LIBRARY 

A 


PARISH 


AND 


OTHER  PENCILINGS. 


BY    KIR  WAN, 

AUTHOR    OF 

"LETTERS  TO  BISHOP  HUGHES,"  "ROMANISM  AT  HOME,"  "MEN  AND 
THINGS  AS  SEEN  IN  EUROPE,"  Ac. 


NEW    YORK: 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN  SQUAEE. 
1854. 


Entered,  according  to  an  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty-four,  by 

HARPER   <fe   BROTHERS, 
in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  Southern  District  of  New  York. 


TO 


THE  REV.  JOHN  EDGAR,  D.D., 

OF  BELFAST,  IRELAND, 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSOR,  THE  UNTIRING  PHILANTHROPIST, 
THE  FAITHFUL  MINISTER,  THE  DEVOTED  CHRIS- 
TIAN, THE  TRUE  MAN, 


iis  ffolmn?  is 


BY  HIS  FRIEND 


THE   AUTHOR. 


PREFACE, 


VERY  early  in  my  ministry  I  commenced  noting 
peculiar  providences,  and  making  brief  notes  in  refer- 
ence to  them.  As  I  have  had  opportunity,  these  notes 
have  been  written  out  into  brief  articles,  such  as  these 
which  mostly  compose  the  present  volume.  Some  of 
them  have  been  published  under  varying  signatures, 
and  have  obtained  through  the  religious  press  a  wide 
circulation  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  A  few  of 
them,  reduced  and  compressed,  have  been  published 
as  tracts,  and  have  in  that  form  been  widely  scattered. 
I  make  this  statement  here,  that  none  may  be  aston- 
ished at  finding  in  these  pages  some  articles  they  may 
have  read  with  interest  years  ago,  without  knowing  or 
caring  who  was  their  author. 

Save  the  three  articles  on  Dr.  Duff  and  the  Nuncio 
Bedini,  none  have  been  published  over  the  nom  de 
plume  of  the  author  ;  and  these,  with  the  article 
"  Popery  in  the  United  States,"  have  been  inserted  at 
the  request  of  some  friends,  who  deemed  them  worthy 
of  preservation  from  the  fate  of  most  periodical  essays 
— oblivion. 

The  subjects  of  some  of  these  Pencilings  will  doubt- 
less be  recognized  by  persons  residing  in  the  places 
where  the  incidents  narrated  occurred.  Making  al- 
lowance for  the  difference  caused  by  the  different 


VI  PREFACE. 

stand-points  from  which  things  are  viewed,  such  will 
pronounce  the  narratives  accurate.  They  are  not  fic- 
tion founded  on  fact.  The  same  assurance  is  given 
as  to  those  narratives  whose  subjects  are  not  likely  to 
be  remembered.  I  have  long  ago  rejected  as  greatly 
injurious,  and  as  far-reaching  in  its  evil  tendencies, 
the  principle  of  teaching  religious  truths  under  the 
garb  of  fiction.  From  much  of  the  religious  literature 
prepared  for  the  young,  the  transition  is  much  more 
easy  and  natural  to  the  novel  than  to  the  Bible.  Old 
people  are  often  heard  to  complain  of  the  slender  and 
frail  religious  character  of  the  rising  generation.  The 
cause  may  be  traced  to  the  trashy  books  prepared  for 
the  young,  and  for  whose  distribution  the  all-pervading 
agency  of  the  Sabbath-school  is  not  unfrequently  in- 
voked. 

I  am  by  no  means  indifferent  to  the  reception  which 
this  volume  may  receive  from  the  public.  I  invoke 
for  it  some  of  that  kindness  which  has  been  shown  to 
its  predecessors;  but  my  chief  solicitude  is,  that  it 
may  be  blessed  of  God  to  all  who  may  favor  it  with  a 
perusal.  If  it  shall  be  blessed  to  the  saving  of  one 
soul,  I  will  thank  Grod  and  take  courage,  and,  perhaps, 
send  forth  another.  Books  are  like  sins— one  is  likely 
to  bring  another  in  its  train. 


CONTENTS, 


PAOE 

THE   AURORA   BOREALI8 9 

THE    HAY-MOW 16 

THE    TAP-ROOT 23 

THE    BIRD    IN    THE    CHURCH 29 

THE    FEARFUL    FUNERAL 34 

THE    BRILLIANT   STAR 41 

THE   ONE    TALENT    SANCTIFIED 4*7 

THE    DANGER    OF   DELAY 54 

THE    DYING    REGRET    OF   HARRIET 61 

"  BUT   I    WAS    NOT    ONE    OF   THEM*' 68 

LAURA    ANN 75 

THE   SCENE    IN    A    GRAVE- YARD 85 

HELENA,    THE    MOTHER    OF   CON8TANTINE 93 

THE    FUNERAL    AT   SEA 99 

THE    LAST    GAME    OF   CARDS 106 

THE   MORMON    PREACHER 114 

CHRIST    NEVER    FORGOTTEN 121 

THANKFULNESS 128 

THE    REV.    ASHBEL    GREEN,  D.D 135 

BEDINI,   THE    PAPAL    NUNCIO,   GONE  I    14*7 

BEDINI    AND    DR.    DUFF A    CONTRAST 154 

BEDINI    AND    DUFF ANOTHER   CONTRAST 160 

THE  REV.    ARCHIBALD    ALEXANDER,   D.D 16*7 

REV.   SAMUEL    MILLER,    D.D 172 

AN   ELDER    INDEED 179 

MARY   MAGDALENE 186 

POPERY   IN    THE   UNITED    STATES 198 

A    DREAM > , 212 

THE    PRAYER    OF    FAITH 218 

DEATH-BED    REPENTANCES    225 

THE    SORROWFUL    SERMON 240 

BEASTS    AT    EPHESUS 247 

DRIFT-WOOD 256 

A   MOTHER   IN   ISRAEL 264 


PARISH  PENCILING  S, 


THE  AURORA  BOREALIS. 


The  sight  described. 


BUT  few  that  saw  it  will  ever  forget  the  Aurora 
(or  Northern  Light)  which  occurred  in  the  winter  of 
1836—7.  It  was  pronounced,  at  the  time,  to  be  the  most 
brilliant  and  general  that  had  been  seen  by  any  liv- 
ing man.  It  was  not  confined,  as  it  usually  is,  to  the 
northern  section  of  the  heavens.  The  whole  horizon 
was  illumined  by  arches  of  fiery  hue,  from  which  col- 
umns and  sheaves  of  light,  of  the  most  variegated  and 
beautiful  colors,  shot  up  toward  the  zenith,  forming 
there  a  fiery  coronet  of  the  most  transcendent  beauty. 
The  agitation  of  these  columns  and  sheaves  was  some- 
times very  great.  Of  a  sudden  these  agitations  would 
cease,  and  the  light  would  die  a\vay,  and  the  heavens 
would  resume  their  wonted  appearance ;  but  in  a  mo- 
ment these  columns  would  shoot  up  again  in  increased 
size,  and  with  greater  splendor,  giving  an  appearance 
of  brilliancy  and  grandeur  to  the  heavens  which  called 
forth  the  loud  acclamations  of  the  admiring  beholders. 
For  some  weeks  previous  the  earth  had  been  covered 
with  a  deep  snow,  which  a  cold  frost  had  made  to 
sparkle  with  a  peculiar  brilliancy ;  and  such  was  the 
effect  upon  it  of  the  Aurora,  that  streets,  fields,  and 
A2 


10  PARIS  II    PENCILING  S. 

A  new  hearer.  My  Irst  visit. 

houses  looked  as  if  they  were  covered  with  blood. 
This  remarkable  phenomenon  only  disappeared  from 
the  sky  as  the  morning  light  began  to  dawn. 

Not  long  afterward  I  observed,  on  Sabbath  evening, 
and  on  the  evening  of  the  weekly  service,  in  a  corner 
of  my  lecture-room,  a  female  who  was  a  stranger  to 
me,  and,  obviously,  to  the  place.  Her  attention  was 
marked ;  her  attendance  became  regular.  Weeks 
passed  away  without  my  knowing  who  she  was.  I 
received  a  request  to  visit  a  family  where  was  a  woman 
anxious  about  her  soul.  As  I  entered  the  door  I  was 
met  by  the  stranger  I  had  seen  in  the  lecture-room. 
I  was  favorably  impressed  by  her  subdued  and  respect- 
ful manner,  her  great  frankness  and  candor,  and  her 
deep  solicitude  to  know  the  way  to  be  saved.  Taking 
my  seat  by  her  side,  and  after  hearing  her  account  of 
her  feelings,  I  asked  her  if  she  understood  the  plan  of 
salvation  through  Jesus  Christ.  Her  reply  was,  "  I 
am  afraid  I  do  not." 

"  Then,  madam,"  said  I,  "  will  you  permit  me  to  ex- 
plain it  to  you  in  a  brief  and  simple  manner  ?" 

"  That,"  said  she,  "  is  the  very  thing  I  want  you 
to  do." 

"  Well,  then,"  said  I,  addressing  her  personally,  and 
applying  every  word  to  herself,  "  you  are  a  sinner  in 
heart  and  in  life.  God  is  angry  with  you  every  day. 
Every  sin  you  have  ever  committed  deserves  eternal 
banishment  from  Grod :  so  that  you  deserve  to  die  as 
often  as  you  have  sinned.  From  the  guilt  and  punish- 
ment of  sin  you  can  not  relieve  yourself — nor  can  man 
or  angel  relieve  you — nor  can  baptism  or  the  Lord's 


THE     AURORA     BOREALIS.  11 

The  way  of  life.  Christ  the  end  of  the  law. 

Supper,  or  any  other  rite,  relieve  you.  And  such  is 
the  nature  of  your  sin,  and  of  the  justice  and  govern- 
ment of  God,  that  you  can  not  be  saved  unless  law  and 
justice  are  satisfied  for  the  many  sins  you  have  com- 
mitted." 

I  stopped  a  moment  to  see  the  effect  of  all  this  upon 
her  mind.  Looking  at  me  with  a  tearful  eye,  she  re- 
plied in  a  subdued  tone,  "  I  feel  all  this  in  my  soul. 
My  fear  of  the  anger  of  (rod  which  my  sins  have  kin- 
dled is  so  great  that  I  can  not  sleep  or  eat.  My  tears 
flow  day  and  night." 

But,"  said  I,  "  there  is  a  way  of  escape  from  the 
guilt  and  the  punishment  of  sin.  You  are  a  sinner ; 
and  Jesus  Christ  has  died  for  sinners.  He  bore  the 
sins  of  all  who  ever  have,  or  ever  will  believe  upon  him, 
in  his  own  body  on  the  tree.  The  law  requires  us  to 
be  righteous  in  order  to  enter  heaven ;  and  Christ  Je- 
sus is  the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness  to  every  one 
that  believes  upon  him.  If  you  feel  yourself  to  be  a 
sinner,  you  have  nothing  to  do  but  to  believe  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  order  to  be  saved.  If  you  repent 
of  sin,  and  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ — if  you  be- 
lieve what  Jesus  teaches — if  you  do  as  he  commands 
— if,  now,  without  a  moment's  delay,  you  can  trust 
your  soul  and  its  concerns  in  the  hands  of  Jesus  Christ, 
without  waiting  until  you  are  either  better  or  worse, 
he  will  certainly  save  you  ;  for  he  says,  "  Come  unto 
me,  all  ye  that  are  weary  and  heavy  laden,  and  I  will 
give  you- rest." 

With  her  bright  and  beaming  eye  fixed  upon  me, 
she  drank  in  every  word  that  I  uttered ;  and  when  I 


12  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

The  offer  accepted.  The  history. 

concluded,  she  promptly  replied,  "  This  is  just  the  way 
that  suits  my  case."  "  Are  you  willing  now,"  said  I, 
"  to  believe  in  Christ,  to  cast  yourself  upon  the  merits 
of  his  atonement,  to  take  him  to  be  your  Savior  from 
all  sin  ?"  "  Yes,"  said  she,  with  the  eagerness  of  a 
drowning  man  catching  hold  of  the  boat  sent  out  to 
his  rescue,  "  yes,  I  take  him  now  to  be  my  Savior ;  I 
cast  myself  now  upon  the  merits  of  his  atonement." 

I  prayed  with  her.  When  we  arose  from  our  knees 
her  whole  expression  was  changed,  and  a  new  song 
was  put  into  her  mouth.  I  felt  there  was  a  new  tro- 
phy to  redeeming  grace  and  love  before  me. 

I  now  felt  greatly  desirous  to  know  something  about 
her  history,  the  leading  incidents  of  which  she  gave 
me  with  great  frankness.  She  was  born  and  educated 
a  Roman  Catholic.  Though  well  educated,  she  was, 
on  the  subject  of  religion,  extremely  ignorant.  Al- 
though now  in  mid-life,  and  the  mother  of  children, 
all  the  attention  she  ever  gave  to  her  soul  was  to  go 
to  mass  and  to  confession;  and  even  that  she  had 
given  up  for  years,  convinced  of  their  utter  worthless- 
ness.  And  up  to  the  evening  of  the  Aurora  Borealis, 
she  never  had  a  conviction  of  her  sinfulness.  With 
thousands  of  others,  she  gazed  upon  the  brilliant  heav- 
ens and  the  apparently  crimsoned  earth.  The  thought 
of  the  final  conflagration,  and  of  her  utter  unfitness  to 
meet  that  dread  scene,  seized  her  mind,  and  she  re- 
tired to  her  room  deeply  impressed  with  the  greatness 
of  God,  and  her  own  sinfulness  and  ingratitude.  Then 
was  made  the  first  of  those,  impressions  which  resulted 
in  her  conversion. 


THE     AURORA     BOREALIS.  13 

Her  husband.  Solicitude.  The  result. 

Her  husband  was  a  Frenchman,  of  Protestant  pa- 
rentage, but  utterly  regardless  of  religion.  When  he 
returned  home  on  the  evening  of  the  day  of  my  visit, 
she  told  him  of  my  conversation  with  her,  and  its  ef- 
fects upon  her  mind  and  heart.  She  read  to  him  from 
the  Bible,  and  prayed  with  him.  "With  his  consent 
she  erected  the  family  altar.  Her  fidelity  to  him,  and 
her  deep  anxiety  for  his  salvation,  created  some  rest- 
iveness,  and  he  refused  to  hear  her.  In  the  deepest 
distress  she  sought  my  advice.  I  told  her  to  increase 
her  supplications  for  him  in  private,  but  to  do  nothing 
that  would  fret  his  mind,  as  that  would  be  to  defeat 
her  great  object.  She  retired  resolved  to  follow  my 
advice. 

Some  weeks  had  passed  away  without  my  knowing 
any  thing  of  what  was  going  on  in  this  little  family. 
On  a  Sabbath  evening,  after  a  day  of  peculiar  solem- 
nity in  the  house  of  the  Lord,  and  when,  with  a  de- 
jected spirit,  I  was  thinking  that  I  had  spent  my 
strength  for  naught,  she  appeared  in  my  study  with 
her  husband.  She  narrated  her  conversation  and 
prayers  with  him,  and  he  frankly  confessed  his  oppo- 
sition of  heart  to  her  change  of  mind,  and  especially 
to  her  conduct  toward  him  in  pressing  religion  upon 
him  on  all  occasions.  "  But,"  said  he,  "  her  prayers 
and  tears  have  broke  my  heart." 

"  I  told  John,"  said  she,  "  that  if  you  would  tell  him 
what  you  told  me,  he  would  love  Grod  too,  and  that  he 
would  feel  better  in  his  mind  and  heart.  I  have  strove 
to  tell  him  all,  but  he  does  not  understand  me  well 
enough,  and  I  wish  you  to  tell  him  about  Jesus  Christ." 


14  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

The  visit  blessed.  God  uses  various  means. 

After  hearing  with  intense  interest  their  narratives  as 
to  each  other's  conduct,  I  spread  out  before  John  the 
plan  of  salvation,  essentially  as  I  had  done  a  few  weeks 
previous  before  his  wife.  When  I  got  through,  I  asked 
him,  "  How  does  this  plan  appear  to  you  ?"  His  reply 
was,  "  It  is  the  very  one  for  me — I  can  now  and  cor- 
dially embrace  it."  I  prayed  with  them,  and  when 
we  rose  from  our  knees  John  seemed  a  changed  man. 
Before  he  left  my  study  he  felt  that  he  could  rejoice  in 
Christ  as  his  Savior. 

Not  long  after,  they  professed  their  faith  in  Christ, 
and  although  for  years  beyond  the  bounds  of  my  min- 
istry, I  believe  they  yet  live  to  adorn  that  profession ; 
and  their  conversion  may  be  traced  up,  as  a  means 
under  God,  to  the  Aurora  Borealis. 

How  plainly  this  narrative  teaches  the  following 
truths : 

The  means  of  Grod  for  impressing  the  minds  of  sin- 
ners, and  leading  them  to  himself  for  pardon  and  sal- 
vation, are  exhaustless. 

A  clear  understanding  of  the  plan  of  salvation 
through  a  Savior — of  its  freeness  and  fullness — of  its 
sovereign  efficacy  when  truly  relied  on,  is  the  only  sure 
way  of  securing  peace  to  the  anxious  sinner. 

How  important  that  the  believing  wife  should  labor 
for  the  salvation  of  the  unbelieving  husband,  and  the 
believing  husband  for  that  of  the  unbelieving  wife ! 

A  word  to  the  reader  of  this  narrative.  Are  you  a 
careless  sinner  ?  If  the  Aurora  so  impressed  the  mind 
of  this  woman,  what  will  be  your  impressions  when 
the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat — when  the 


THE     AURORA     BOREALIS.  15 

To  the  anxious.  The  Christian. 

earth,  with  all  that  it  contains,  shall  be  consumed? 
Are  you  an  anxious  sinner  ?  Then  Jesus  died  for  sin- 
ners ;  and  he  died  for  you,  because  you  are  a  sinner. 
To  be  saved,  you  have  only  to  believe  upon  him.  Are 
you  a  Christian  ?  Then  rise  from  the  perusal  of  this 
narrative  with  the  resolution  to  labor  for  the  conver- 
sion of  some  soul,  as  this  woman  labored  for  the  con- 
version of  her  husband,  and  yours  may  not  be  a  star- 
less crown. 


16  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

.. T  A  lovely  valley.  The  home  of  the  Indian. 

V 

THE  HAY-MOW. 

MY  first  settlement  in  the  ministry  was  in  a  valley! 
in  one  of  the  Middle  States,  beautiful  beyond  descrip- 
tion. A  broad  and  winding  river  enters  it  at  the  north, 
between  two  high,  rocky  peaks,  which  bear  the  evi- 
dence of  being  torn  from  each  other's  embrace  by  some 
dread  concussion  of  nature  ;  and,  after  a  course  of  fif- 
teen miles,  takes  its  exit  at  the  south,  and  through  a 
gap  probably  made  in  the  same  way.  On  either  side 
of  this  river  the  bottom-lands  are  exceedingly  rich.  As 
you  leave  the  river,  these  lands  gradually  undulate, 
until,  at  the  distance  of  about  two  miles,  they  rise  into 
mountains  on  the  east  and  west,  which  seem  built  of 
heaven  to  guard  the  quiet  vale  from  all  disturbing  in- 
trusions. As  the  traveler  reaches  the  brow  of  the  east- 
ern mountain,  a  scene  of  surpassing  loveliness  spreads 
itself  beneath  him ;  and  he  feels  that  if  peace  has  not 
utterly  forsaken  our  world,  its  residence  must  be  there. 
The  valley  seems  as  if  expressly  made  for  the  home  of 
the  Indian;  and  for  moons  beyond  the  power  of  his 
arithmetic  to  calculate,  the  red  man  fished  in  that  riv- 
er, and  planted  his  corn  in  that  rich  bottom,  and  sought 
his»game  upon  the  mountains.  And  before  he  could 
be  compelled  to  yield  it,  he  made  the  white  man  feel 
the  power  of  his  anger  in  many  a  dreadful  surprise. 

But  sin,  and  in  its  very  worst  forms,  found  an  en- 


THE     H  A  Y  -  M  O  W.  17 

An  unpromising  field.  First  labors.  A  good  man. 

trance  into  this  beautiful  spot.  Early  in  the  history 
of  the  settlement,  a  church  was  collected  there,  which 
continued  a  feeble  existence  until  18 — ,  when  I  be- 
came its  pastor.  Young,  ardent,  and  without  experi- 
ence, I  here  commenced  my  ministry,  in  a  community 
proverbial  both  for  its  intelligence  and  its  disregard  of 
religion  ;  amid  external  opposition,  and  with  a  church 
small,  and  rent  by  internal  discords.  A  more  unprom- 
ising field  none  could  desire. 

I  entered  on  my  duties  with  zeal,  and  was  diligent 
in  their  performance.  I  prepared  my  sermons  with 
care,  and  thought  them  conclusive ;  but  few  heard 
them,  and  none  seemed  convinced  by  them.  I  felt 
deeply  myself,  but  my  hearers  seemed  unmoved. 
Months  thus  passed  away  without,  to  my  knowledge, 
a  religious,  impression  being  made  on  any  mind  ;  and, 
feeling  that  I  labored  in  vain5<and  spent  my  strength 
for  naught,  I  was  about  giving  up  in  despair.  My 
preaching  seemed  more  to  excite  the  opposition  of  the 
wicked  than  the  prayers  of  the  pious. 

There  was  among  my  people  a  man  in  mid-life,  a 
German  by  birth,  and  a  remarkably  simple-hearted, 
pure-minded  Christian.  Whoever  was  absent,  he  was 
always  present  at  the  place  of  prayer.  One  evening, 
early  in  December,  as  I  was  about  retiring  to  rest,  I 
heard  a  knock  at  my  door,  and  my  German  friend  was 
introduced,  his  countenance  full  of  emotion.  On  tak- 
ing his  seat,  his  first  words  were  these :  "  My  dear 
pastor,  I  have  come  to  tell  you  that  the  Lord  is  about 
to  revive  his  work  here."  Surprised  at  his  appearance 
and  language,  and  at  the  lateness  of  his  visit,  I  asked 


18  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  hay-mow.  Things  change.  First  revival. 

him,  "  Why  do  you  think  so  ?"  He  replied  as  follows : 
"  About  eight  o'clock  this  evening,  I  went  up  to  my 
hay-mow  to  give  hay  to  my  cattle,  and  while  there 
the  Spirit  of  God  came  upon  me,  and  has  kept  me 
there  praying  until  now.  I  feel  that  Grod  is  about  to 
revive  his  work,  and  I  could  not  go  in  to  my  family 
until  I  told  you."  The  entire  simplicity  and  earnest- 
ness of  the  good  man  convinced  me  that  Grod  had  vouch- 
safed to  visit  his  servant.  After  some  conversation  we 
parted,  mutually  agreeing  to  pray  and  labor  for  a  re- 
vival of  religion,  and  to  engage  as  many  as  we  could 
to  do  the  same. 

Every  meeting  for  religious  services  was  now  to  me 
one  of  intense  interest.  A  few  days  convinced  me  that 
the  spirit  of  prayer  was  on  the  increase.  Meetings  for 
prayer  were  numerously  attended.  The  church  on  the 
Sabbath  became  more  full  and  solemn ;  and  a  few 
weeks  after  that  evening  of  wrestling  with  Grod  on  the 
hay-mow,  found  me  in  the  midst  of  the  first  revival  of 
my  ministry,  and  one  of  the  most  precious  I  ever  wit- 
nessed. 

Permit  me  to  narrate  a  few  incidents  which  occur- 
red during  the  progress  of  this  revival,  and  which  il- 
lustrate some  great  truths  that  should  not  be  forgotten. 

Among  the  first  that  expressed  seriousness  was  a 
fashionable  and  well-educated  young  lady,  belonging 
to  one  of  our  richest  families.  She  was  the  pride  of  a 
mother  whose  ambition  it  was  to  have  her  shine  in 

elegant  society.  Miss  E expressed  a  hope  in 

Christ.  In  a  few  days  she  was  sent  to  spend  the  win- 
ter in  one  of  our  principal  cities  with  some  gay  friends, 


T  H  E     H  A  Y  -  M  O  \V.  19 

Miss  E .  A  young  man.  Mr.  C . 

who  were  directed  to  take  her  to  all  the  fashionable 
amusements.  She  yielded  to  the  temptation;  and 
when  she  returned  in  the  spring,  seemed  farther  from 
the  kingdom  of  heaven  than  ever.  Another  refreshing 
was  soon  enjoyed,  when  the  former  feelings  of  this 
young  lady  returned.  She  became  hopefully  pious,  and 
in  a  few  months  the  wife  of  a  godly  minister.  And 
her  large  family,  perhaps  influenced  by  her  example, 
followed  her  into  the  fold  of  Christ. 

There  was  in  the  place  a  young  man,  a  profane,  but 
yet  an  industrious  mechanic.  Like  Nicodemus,  he 
came  to  me  by  night  to  know  what  he  should  do  to  be 
saved.  His  feelings  seemed  of  the  most  pungent  char- 
acter, and  his  visits  were  often  repeated.  He  thought 
he  understood  and  could  joyfully  embrace  the  plan  of 
salvation  through  Jesus  Christ.  Yielding  to  the  influ- 
ence of  one  wicked  companion,  in  a  few  weeks  he  for- 
sook the  house  of  prayer  and  the  people  of  God.  As 
long  as  I  knew  him  afterward,  he  was  among  the 
most  obdurate  men  I  ever  knew.  He  ripened  for  ruin ; 
and  not  long  ago,  with  one  stroke,  as  the  woodman  re- 
moves the  saplings  out  of  his  way,  God  cut  him  down. 
It  is  a  fearful  thing  to  quench  the  Spirit ! 

Mr.  C was  a  pleasant,  moral,  and  interesting 

man.  Under  the  prayers  and  conversations  of  a  pious 
mother,  he  grew  up  a  friend  to  the  institutions  of  re- 
ligion. His  mind  became  deeply  interested.  But  a 
more  convenient  season  was  always  an  excuse  for  the 
putting  aside  of  present  duty.  In  the  midst  of  the  re- 
vival, when  some  of  the  sturdy  cedars  of  Lebanon  were 
bowing,  his  aged  mother,  and  with  tears,  besought  him 


20  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Excuse  me  now.  The  mother's  lament. 

to  make  God  his  portion.  "  Mother,"  said  he,  "  you 
are  dependent  upon  me  for  a  subsistence,  and  so  are 
my  motherless  children.  To  provide  for  you  all  is  my 
pleasure  and  my  duty.  I  am  now  engaged  in  a  very 
profitable  work  among  the  mountains,  and  when  I 
have  made  enough  to  support  you  all  comfortably,  in 
connection  with  my  own  industry,  I  promise  you  I 
will  attend  to  religion.  But  you  must  excuse  me 
now."  And  with  a  solemn  warning  against  the  folly 
of  such  reasoning  from  the  lips  of  his  aged  mother,  he 
hastened  to  his  business  among  the  mountains.  On 
the  evening  of  the  third  day  from  his  departure,  he  was 
brought  back  to  that  motherland  was  laid  at  her  feet 
a  mutilated  corpse.  Before  he  could  escape  its  track, 
a  log  of  timber  rolling  down  a  steep  precipice  caught 
him,  and,  rolling  over  him,  almost  ground  him  to  pow- 
der. And  as  we  laid  him  down  in  the  grave,  I  heard 
that  mother  exclaim,  in  the  bitterness  of  her  sorrow, 
"Would  to  Grod  I  had  died  for  thee,  my  son,  my  son." 
Oh  the  folly  of  boasting  of  to-morrow,  as  we  know  not 
what  a  day  may  bring  forth ! 

Some  of  our  pious  people  undertook  the  circulation 
of  religious  tracts.  The  tract  "  The  "Way  to  be  Saved" 
was  selected  for  the  purpose  of  placing  in  the  hands 
of  our  people  a  plain  and  simple  guide  to  to  the  Savior 
of  shiners.  One  of  these  was  placed  in  the  shop  of  a 
mechanic  who  was  noted  for  his  profanity  and  vulgar- 
ity. Blotting  out  the  word  "  saved"  in  the  title  of  the 
tract,  he  wrote  in  its  place  "  damned,"  so  that  the 
title,  thus  amended,  read,  "  The  "Way  to  be  Damned." 
Now  tearing  it  nearly  in  two,  he  flung  it  into  the 


THE     HAY-MOW.  21 

The  mutilated  tract.  Important  lessons. 

street.  It  was  soon  picked  up  by  a  young  woman,  deep- 
ly serious,  and  who,  although  shocked  by  its  title,  car- 
ried it  home.  She  read  it  with  care ;  she  pasted  the 
torn  leaves  together,  and  read  it  again  and  again.  She 
went  as  directed,  and  found  peace  and  joy  in  believing. 
And  in  a  conversation  with  her  about  her  hope,  she 
drew  from  her  bosom  this  mutilated  tract,  saying, 
"  This  is  the  little  book  that  told  me  the  way  to  the 
cross."  If  yet  alive,  I  have  no  doubt  she  preserves  it 
among  her  choicest  treasures.  Thus  it  is  that  God 
often  makes  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  him ! 

Many  instances  like  these  occurred  during  that  re- 
vival, which  the  time  would  fail  me  to  enumerate. 
But  even  these  emphatically  teach  us, 

1.  That  when  faithfully  and  prayerfully  discharging 
duty,  ministers  must  not  be  unduly  discouraged  by 
unpropitious    external    circumstances.      If  they   go 
forth  weeping,  bearing  precious   seed,  they  will  re- 
turn again  with  rejoicing,  bringing  their  sheaves  with 
them. 

2.  They  teach  us  the  power  of  prayer.     It  moves 
the  hand  that  moves  the  world.     That  revival,  with 
its  consequent  blessings,  I  have  ever  traced,  under 
God,  to  that  prayer  on   the  hay-mow.     The  prayerr 
that  God  inspires  he  will  answer. 

3.  They  teach  us  the  awful  guilt  of  parents  who 
sacrifice  the  souls  of  their  children  at  the  shrines  of 
worldly  ambition.    And,  alas !  how  many  such  parents 
there  are! 

4.  They  utter  warning  notes  in  the  ears  of  those 
who  quench  the  strivings  of  the  Spirit,  or  who  post- 


22  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Pearls  cast  before  swine.  Good  men  never  die. 

pone  the  duty  of  submission  to  God  now  to  an  uncer- 
tain future. 

5.  They  teach  us,  that  even  pearls  cast  before  swine 
may  not  be  in  vain.  Through  the  wickedness  of  the 
wicked,  God  is  ever  accomplishing  his  purposes  of  love. 
How  invincible  the  combined  agencies  of  mercy,  when 
even  one  mutilated  tract  becomes  the  instrument  of 
life  from  the  dead  to  a  human  soul ! 

Years  have  passed  away  since  this  revival  occurred. 
Some  of  its  subjects  have  already  entered  on  its  re- 
ward. That  simple-hearted,  pious  German  has  gone 
up  to  his  Savior.  But  the  influences  of  that  prayer  011 
the  hay-mow  will  live  forever.  Good  men  never  die ; 
they  rest  from  their  labors,  but  their  works  do  follow 
them.  May  our  churches  never  want  members  like 
him  who  wrestled  and  prevailed  with  God  on  the  hay- 
mow. 


THETAP-ROOT.  23 

A  wav-side  talk.  The  tree.  Vain  effort. 


THE  TAP-ROOT. 

ON  a  bright  and  bracing  afternoon,  early  in  March, 
returning  from  a  visit  to  an  afflicted  family,  I  met  with 
one  of  my  intelligent  parishioners  sitting  on  a  fence. 
A  gorgeous  sunset  was  displaying  its  glories  in  the 
west,  and  my  friend  gave  true  indications  that  the  day 
closing  around  us  had  not  been  spent  in  idleness. 
"  What,"  said  I,  in  a  friendly  tone  of  recognition,  "  are 
you  doing  here  ?"  "  I  want,"  said  he,  "  to  transplant 
that  pretty  elm  into  my  door-yard,  and  I  have  been 
laboring  here  for  hours  to  dig  it  up,  in  vain.  The  tree, 
perhaps,  is  a  little  too  old  to  be  transplanted;  but  if 
removed  early  in  the  spring,  and  with  a  large  root, 
trees  frequently  live,  even  beyond  the  age  of  this." 

I  crossed  the  fence  to  take  a  view  of  the  tree.  So 
finely  formed  was  it,  I  wondered  not  at  the  desire  to 
transplant  it  where  it  3  beauty  might  be  observed  and 
its  shade  be  useful.  I  found  it  surrounded  with  a 
deep  trench,  and  its  lateral  roots  all  cut ;  and  feeling 
that  a  strong  push  would  lay  it  on  the  earth,  I  gave  it 
one.  Not  a  twig  nor  a  leaf  moved  the  more  on  that 
account.  I  wondered,  and  turning  to  my  friend,  I 
asked,  "  Why  is  it  so  firm,  when  so  many  of  its  roots 
are  cut,  and  when  united  to  the  earth  by  a  stem  so 
small  ?"  "  The  tap-root,"  said  he,  "  remains,  and  un- 
til that  is  cut  it  will  remain  firm."  Hearing  the 


24  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Tap-root.  The  explanation.  The  tree  transplanted. 

phrase  for  the  first  time  in  my  life,  I  asked,  "  What  do 
you  mean  by  the  iap-root  ?"  "  Almost  every  tree," 
said  he,  "  has  its  tap-root,  which  goes  as  straight  down 
into  the  earth  as  the  trunk  goes  into  the  air ;  and  un- 
til that  root  is  cut,  the  tree  stands,  and  will  grow.  And 
if  I  should  fill  up  this  trench  now,  the  tree  would  feel 
but  little  the  cutting  of  all  these  lateral  roots ;  they 
would  soon  grow  out,  and  the  tree  would  be  as  strong 
as  ever." 

We  soon  parted.  I  pursued  my  way  home  ponder- 
ing these  remarks.  The  tree  was  transplanted,  and 
now  stands,  a  noble  and  beautiful  tree,  just  in  the 
place  selected  for  it.  My  friend  has  been  transplanted 
to  another  world.  Years  have  passed  since  the  above 
conversation,  but  it  has  never  been  forgotten.  It  has 
suggested  many  truths  to  my  mind,  and  it  explains 
many  things  frequently  occurring  under  our  own  ob- 
servation, and  which  frequently  cause  doubt  and  hesi- 
tation. Some  of  these  truths  and  things  I  will  here  state. 

Are  trees  transplanted  with  difficulty  after  they 
have  received  a  certain  growth?  This  all  admit. 
The  rule  is,  to  transplant  them,  whether  fruit,  forest, 
or  ornamental,  when  young.  Such  is  the  law  which 
rules  in  the  kingdom  of  grace.  •  "  How  can  a  man  bo 
born  when  he  is  old  ?"  is  a  question  of  emphatic  im- 
port to  those  who  have  grown  up  to  mature  years  be- 
yond the  walls  which  inclose  the  Lord's  vineyard. 

Has  almost  every  tree  its  tap-root  ?  So  every  sin- 
ner has  his  besetting  sin,  which  sustains  him  in  his 
rebellion  against  God  more  than  any  other,  and  even 
when  almost  all  others  seem  to  be  laid  aside. 


THETAP-ROOT.  25 

The  moral  tap-root.  One  sin  destroys.  Covetousness. 

Are  the  lateral  branches  cut  in  vain  until  the  tap- 
root is  cut  ?  Does  the  tree  stand  until  the  tap-root  is 
severed?  So,  as  far  as  their  salvation  is  concerned, 
men  are  reformed  in  vain  from  immoral  practices  un- 
til the  heart  is  converted.  A  depraved  heart  is  the 
tap-root  of  that  tree  of  evil  which  bears  fruit  unto 
death ;  and  until  that  heart  is  taken  away,  the  tree 
stands.  Until  this  is  effected,  all  reformation  falls 
short  of  saving  the  soul. 

Is  the  tree  sustained  by  one  root  when  all  others  are 
cut  ?  Through  that  one  root  is  it  nourished  into  a 
permanent,  if  not  a  luxurious  growth?  So  one  sin 
unmortified,  with  its  power  over  the  soul  unbroken, 
secures  its  final,  its  eternal  loss. 

How  manifold  are  the  illustrations  of  these  truths  in 
the  Bible  !  Why  did  Balaam,  who  understood  the  will 
of  God,  and  saw  the  visions  of  the  Almighty,  do  as  he 
did  ?  Covetousness  was  his  tap-root  sin,  and  that  was 
uncut.  Why  did  Judas,  after  having  preached  the 
Gospel,  and  wrought  miracles,  and  been  numbered 
with  the  apostles,  betray  his  master  ?  The  answer  is 
the  same.  Why  did  Ananias  and  Sapphira,  and  Simon 
Magus,  do  as  they  did  ?  The  answer  is  the  same. 
Why  did  the  young  man,  who  asked  of  Jesus  what  he 
should  do  to  inherit  eternal  life,  and  whom  Jesus  loved, 
do  as  he  did  ?  In  all  these  cases,  Covetousness  was  the 
tap-root  sin,  and  that  was  uncut.  0  Covetousness — 
often  miscalled  prudence  and  economy,  but,  by  God, 
idolatry — how  many  souls  hast  thou  destroyed,  and  art 
thou  destroying ! 

But  I  have  said  that  the  above  conversation  with 

B 


26  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Strong  drink.  Terrible  end.  A  young  man. 

my  friend  at  the  tree  also  explains  many  things  fre- 
quently occurring,  and  which  induce  doubt  and  hesi- 
tation. Let  me  specify  a  few,  by  way  of  illustration. 

Under  the  ministry  of  a  faithful  pastor  sat  an  ami- 
able man,  with  unfailing  regularity,  for  years.  All 
hoped  he  was  a  Christian.  At  each  returning  com- 
munion season  it  was  expected  that  he  would  profess 
his  faith  in  Christ;  but  he  came  not.  None  were 
more  tender  than  he  seemed ;  and  his  pastor  supposed 
that  he  was  kept  from  the  communion  of  the  saints 
only  by  that  diffidence  and  distrust  which  are  often  the 
accompaniments  of  true  piety.  A  truer  explanation 
came  at  last.  He  loved  strong  drink,  but  took  it  only 
at  night.  The  appetite  grew  until  it  vanquished  shame, 
and  he  became  a  daily  and  open  drunkard.  He  for- 
sook the  house  and  the  ordinances  of  God.  During 
the  absence  of  his  family  at  church  on  a  certain  Sab- 
bath, he  drank  beyond  measure — he  fell  into  the  fire — 
and  when  his  family  returned  he  was  dead,  and  a  por- 
tion of  his  body  burned  to  a  cinder !  "Why  did  not 
this  man,  in  the  days  of  his  tears  and  tenderness,  take 
Christ  for  his  portion  ?  The  tap-root  was  not  cut. 

I  knew  a  young  man,  who,  although  the  child  of 
praying  parents,  grew  up  an  alien  and  outcast  from 
the  commonwealth  of  Israel.  Grace  is  not  hereditary ; 
it  is  the  gift  of  God.  In  a  spiritual  refreshing  he  was 
deeply  convicted— -he  hoped  he  was  converted.  He 
sought  admission  to  the  Church ;  but  fearing  that  all 
was  not  right,  he  was  kindly  requested  to  wait  until 
the  next  communion  season.  In  a  few  weeks  after- 
ward he  sat  at  a  gambling  table  until  the  stars  were 


THETAP-ROOT.  27 

Reason  of  impenitence.  The  tap-root  sin. 

quenched  in  the  light  of  the  rising  sun.  And  he  con- 
tinued until  his  death  tenfold  more  the  child  of  hell 
than  he  was  before.  The  tap-root  was  not  cut.  In- 
stances like  these,  without  number,  rise  before  me. 

And  the  prevalence  of  some  one  sin  —  its  reigning 
power  over  the  soul — is  the  reason  why  every  sinner 
that  hears  the  Gospel  does  not  believe  it ;  or,  that  be- 
lieves the  Gospel,  does  not  at  once,  by  repentance  to- 
ward God  and  faith  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  seek  the 
salvation  of  his  soul.  And  the  remaining  influence  of 
a  sin  whose  power  has  been  broken,  is  the  reason  why 
any  Christian  fails  in  consecrating  himself  a  living  sac- 
rifice to  God. 

Reader,  are  you  a  sinner  convinced  of  the  truth  of 
the  Gospel,  without  repentance,  without  faith  in  Christ  ? 
If  so,  how  important  to  know  the  sin  that  holds  you 
back  from  the  work  of  your  salvation.  There  is  some 
one  sin  that  does  this  more  than  any  other,  perhaps 
more  than  all  others.  "What  is  it  ? 

A  careful  pondering  of  these  questions  may  lead  you 
to  its  discovery.  "What  are  the  objects  that  most  de- 
light you  ?  "What  are  the  gratifications  on  which  you 
bestow  most  time  ?  thoughts  as  to  what  most  in- 
trude themselves  when  alone  ?  The  last  thing  which 
the  sailor  throws  overboard,  hi  his  efforts  to  save  his 
sinking  vessel,  is  that  which  he  deems  most  precious ; 
what  is  the  sin  you  are  most  anxious  to  retain  ?  When 
you  think  of  being  a  Christian,  what  is  the  sin,  the 
pursuit,  the  habit,  that  you  feel  in  prospect  would  give 
you  the  most  pain  to  abandon  ?  These  questions  point 
to  your  besetting  sin — your  tap-root  sin.  Unless  cut, 
you  are  lost. 


28  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Old  sinners.  An  old  sinner  converted. 

But  if  old  trees  can  not  be  transplanted,  may  not 
old  sinners  be  converted  ?  Yes,  they  may.  As  to  aged 
sinners,  the  difficulty  lies  in  the  nature  of  man,  and 
of  sin,  and  of  evil  habits,  and  not  in  the  grace  of  God. 
Grace  is  all-conquering  when  Grod  sees  fit  to  apply  it. 
Reader,  are  you  an  aged  sinner?  I  have  seen  the 
man,  fourscore  and  two  years  old,  who  bled  in  the 
battles  of  the  Revolution — who  learned  its  worslrvices, 
and  continued  in  their  practice  until  the  age  stated, 
hopefully  converted.  I  have  seen  him  brought,  trem- 
bling with  palsy,  in  his  arm-chair,  to  God's  house,  and 
there  joining  himself  to  the  people  of  God ;  and  having 
commemorated  the  love  of  Christ,  lifting  up  his  with- 
ered hands  to  heaven  in  thanksgiving  for  the  mercies 
vouchsafed.  And  his  subsequent  life  and  triumphant 
death  testified  that  the  work  was  of  God.  But  in  my 
experience,  this  stands  out  a  solitary  case,  to  check 
presumption  on  the  one  hand,  and  despair  on  the  other. 

Reader,  as  you  lay  down  this  volume,  after  reading 
this  article,  take  these  thoughts  for  your  meditation : 

1.  You  have  a  besetting  sin,  stronger  in  its  bad  in- 
fluence over  you  than  any  other. 

2.  It  is  of  the  highest  importance  to  you  to  know 
what  it  is.     Resolve  to  know  it. 

3.  Reformation  is  not  conversion.     The  tree  stands 
when  all  its  lateral  roots  are  cut. 

4.  "Unless  by  the  grace  of  God  your  heart  is  changed, 
all  is  vain.     The  tree  of  evil,  whose  fruit  is  death,  re- 
mains, because  the  tap-root  is  not  cut. 

5.  However  aged   or  wicked,  there  is  grace  and 
power  to  meet  your  case.     Seek  them  without  delay, 
and  aright,  and  they  are  yours. 


THE     BIRD    IN    THE    CHURCH.  29 

The  old  church.  The  house  of  God.  A  revival. 


THE  BIRD  IN   THE  CHURCH. 

THE  town  of  E is  embowered  in  trees.  Its 

ancient  and  spacious  church,  with  its  chiming  clock, 
and  towering  steeple  of  beautiful  proportions,  although 
in  the  centre  of  the  town,  is  yet* in  the  centre  of  forest 
trees,  which  nearly  conceal  it  from  view ;  and,  what 
is  more,  it  is  the  centre  and  home  of  the  affections  of 
a  people  whose  ancestors  for  nearly  two  hundred  years 
have  there  worshiped  God  in  spirit  and  in  truth. 

And  that  ancient  church  is  associated  with  many 
and  wonderful  displays  of  sovereign  grace.  It  has 
been  the  birth-place  of  souls,  the  house  of  God,  and  the 
gate  of  heaven  to  multitudes.  Under  its  ample  roof 
thousands  have  consecrated  themselves  to  God,  and 
amid  the  ordinances  there  dispensed,  have  ripened  for 
glory. 

In  the  year  18—,  the  people  of  E were  favored 

with,  perhaps,  the  most  signal  work  of  grace  they  ever 
enjoyed.  The  whole  community  was  moved  to  its 
deep  foundations,  and  persons  of  all  ages  and  classes 
were  in  the  pursuit  of  salvation  as  the  great  end  of 
their  being.  Many,  the  blessed  fruits  of  that  revival, 
continue  until  the  present  day. 

On  a  Sabbath  of  that  year  of  unusual  brilliancy,  in 
the  late  spring,  that  church  was  crowded  with  multi- 
tudes anxious  about  their  souls,  and  hanging  upon  the 


30  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

The  Sabbath  assembly.  The  bird  in  the  church. 

lips  of  their  beloved  pastor,  who,  with  earnestness  and 
tears,  was  expounding  to  them  the  way  of  reconcilia- 
tion with  (rod.  Every  thing  in  the  external  world — 
the  balmy  and  reviving  breezes — the  new  and  beauti- 
ful dress  which  fields  and  forests  were  putting  on — the 
trees  budding,  or  in  blossom — the  blossoms  setting  in 
fruit,  were  in  sympathy  with  the  feelings  of  this  wor- 
shiping people,  and  were  but  emblems  of  the  spiritual 
transformations  which  were  in  progress  among  them. 
On  this  Sabbath  the  doors  of  the  church  were  open, 
and  the  windows  were  all  closed.  During  the  prog- 
ress of  the  service,  a  bird  entered  by  the  door,  and 
flew  up  to  the  vaulted  roof,  and,  alarmed  by  the  voices 
which  it  heard,  gave  every  evidence  of  anxiety  to  make 
its  escape.  There  sat  in  one  of  the  pews  a  female  un- 
der deep  conviction  for  sin,  and  who,  for  months,  had 
been  seeking,  without  finding,  peace  for  her  soul.  Her 
eye  soon  lit  upon  the  fluttering  bird,  and  followed  him 
from  window  to  window,  in  his  vain  efforts  to  escape. 
It  sought  an  exit  at  every  window,  and  almost  at  every 
pane  of  glass  ;  and  as  it  fluttered  from  one  window  to 
another,  this  female  would  say  in  her  heart,  "  0  fool- 
ish bird,  why  strive  to  get  out  there  ?  is  not  the  door 
wide  open  ?"  It  would  now  rise  to  the  ceiling — now 
renew  its  vain  attempts  at  the  windows ;  this  female 
repeating  to  herself,  "  0  foolish  bird,  why  strive  to  get 
out  there  ?  is  not  the  door  wide  open  ?"  And  when  its 
wings  were  weary,  and  when  all  hope  of  escape  seemed 
to  be  abandoned,  and,  as  if  unable  to  sustain  itself 
longer,  it  lowered  itself  into  the  body  of  the  church, 
caught  a  view  of  the  door,  and  was  out  in  a  moment, 


THE     BIRD    IN    THE     CHURCH.  31 

Its  release.        .  The  convert.  Diversities 'of  operations. 

singing  a  song  of  triumph  over  its  release,  amid  the 
branches  of  the  trees. 

When  the  bird  was  gone,  the  thoughts  of  this  female 
reverted  to  her  own  state  and  doings.  The  voice  of 
the  preacher  was  unheard  amid  the  conflicts  of  her 
own  thoughts.  "  I  have  been  acting,"  said  she,  "  like 
that  foolish  bird.  I  have  been  seeking  peace  in  ways 
in  which  it  is  not  to  be  found,  and  to  go  out  from  the 
bondage  of  sin  through  doors  that  are  closed  against 
me.  -  Christ  is  the  door ;  through  him  there  is  escape 
from  the  dominion  of  sin.  I  have  acted  like  that  fool- 
ish bird  long  enough.  What  the  door  was  to  it,  Christ 
is  to  me.  As  it  escaped  through  the  door,  so  may  I 
through  Christ."  And  she  found  peace  in  believing. 
And  almost  as  soon  as  the  bird  commenced  its  melody 
in  the  trees,  rejoicing  over  its  escape,  she  commenced 
making  melody  in  her  heart  unto  the  Lord. 

Years  passed  away,  and  her  peace  flowed  like  a  riv- 
er whose  gentle  stream  is  never  excited  into  a  ruffle. 
Subsequently  she  had  her  periods  of  occasional  depres- 
sion, but  without  ever  forgetting  that  Christ  is  the  door. 
Threescore  years  and  ten  passed  away,  and  amid  the 
infirmities  of  age  Christ  was  yet  precious  as  the  door. 
She  has  recently  put  off  her  earthly  tabernacle ;  and 
from  the  day  that  she  saw  that  bird  in  the  church,  un- 
til the  day  that  she  passed  in,  through  Christ  the  door, 
amid  the  spirits  of  the  just  made  perfect,  she  never 
gave  ground  for  a  reasonable  doubt  that  Christ  was  in 
her  the  hope  of  glory. 

How  infinitely  diversified  are  the  ways  and  instru- 
mentalities by  which  sinners  are  led  to  be  reconciled 


PARISH     PENCILING  S. 


The  folly  of  sinners.  Christ  the  door. 

to  Grod  !  "  The  wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth,  and  thou 
hearest  the  sound  thereof,  but  canst  not  tell  whence  it 
cometh  or  whither  it  goeth;  so  is  every  one  that  is 
born  of  the  Spirit." 

And  how  truthful  the  application  of  the  folly  of  that 
bird,  by  that  female,  to  her  own  case  !  And  is  not  its 
folly  the  folly  of  every  sinner  ?  The  first  right  feeling 
of  a  sinner  returning  from  the  error  of  his  ways  is  a 
sense  of  his  deep  sinmlness  in  the  sight  of  G-od.  If 
this  feeling  is  never  felt,  then,  in  ordinary  cases,  there 
is  no  return  to  Grod — we  must  die  aliens  to  God,  and 
continue  outcasts  from  the  light  of  the  universe  forever. 
But  when  the  Spirit  convinces  and  convicts  of  sin,  how 
often  is  deliverance  sought  from  it  in  the  ways  that 
the  bird  vainly  sought  to  escape  from  the  church !  The 
sinner  flees  to  every  thing  that  gives  hope  of  deliver- 
ance but  to  the  right  thing.  The  Bible  is  read — pray- 
er is  made — sin  is  abstained  from — the  worship  of  God 
is  frequented — the  advice  of  Christian  people  is  sought ; 
but  there  is  no  escape  from  the  dominion  of  sin — none 
from  a  sense  of  guilt,  nor  from  the  fear  which  it  in- 
spires. All  these  are  but  as  the  windows  to  the  bird, 
which  gave  it  hope  that  it  might  escape  through  them 
because  they  admitted  the  light.  When  it  failed  at 
one  it  flew  to  another ;  each  window,  in  its  turn,  ex- 
cited hope,  and  in  every  case  the  hope  excited  was 
dashed  by  the  trial  to  escape.  When  all  is  done,  the 
weight  of  sin  yet  hangs  upon  the  soul.  And  the  reason 
is,  there  is  yet  no  recourse  to  the  remedy  for  sin,  to  the 
door  of  escape  from  its  power  and  guilt.  CHRIST  is 
that  remedy.  Christ  is  that  door.  And  so  prone  are 


THE     BIRD     IN     THE     CHURCH.  33 

Works.  Central  truths.  The  saving  grace. 

men  to  do  something  to  save  themselves,  that  until  all 
they  can  do  is  tried  in  vain,  they  will  not  look  unto 
"  the  Lamb  of  G-od,  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the 
world." 

The  great  central  truths  of  Christianity,  so  far  as 
men  are  concerned,  are  these  :  we  are  sinners  ;  Christ 
Jesus  has  died  to  atone  to  law  and  justice  for  the  sins 
of  sinners,  and  whosoever  believes  on  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  shall  be  saved.  Reader,  do  you  hope  you  are  a 
Christian  ?  If  so,  you  know  all  this  by  experience. 
Never  cease  telling  these  truths  to  all  men  as  you  have 
opportunity.  Are  you  a  sinner  convicted  of  your  sin, 
and  seeking  deliverance  from  it?  Then  imitate  not 
the  bird  which  sought  an  exit  through  the  closed  win- 
dows, to  the  forgetfulness  of  the  open  door.  Waste  not 
your  time,  and  spend  not  your  strength  for  naught  in 
seeking  relief  at  sources  that  never  can  yield  it.  (TO 
at  once  to  Christ;  ponder  this  one  truth  until  it  is 
written  in  letters  of  living  light  upon  your  soul,  "  He 
that  believeth  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  saved." 
Faith  in  Jesus  Christ  will  save  you ;  nothing  else  can. 
B2 


34  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

A  queer  visitor.  Our  conversation. 


THE   FEARFUL   FUNERAL 

IT  was  on  the  morning  of  a  cold,  chilly  day  in  the 
month  of  April  that  I  was  thus  interrupted  in  my 
studies  by  one  of  my  children :  "  Pa,  there  is  a  queer- 
looking  man  in  the  parlor  who  wants  to  see  you."  On 
entering  the  room,  my  eye  lit  upon  a  man  who  was 
queer-looking  indeed,  because  his  face,  dress,  and  whole 
appearance  proclaimed  him  a  drunkard.  He  rose  on 
my  entering  the  room,  and,  with  that  constrained  and 
awkward  politeness,  amounting  to  obsequiousness, 
which  the  half-intoxicated  often  assume,  he  thus  ad- 
dressed me : 

"  I  come,  sir,  to  ask  you  to  attend  a  funeral  this 
afternoon." 

"Who,"  said  I,  "is  dead?" 

"  A  friend  of  mine,"  he  replied,  "  by  the  name  of 

S ;  and  as  he  has  no  particular  friends  here,  I 

thought  I  would  come  and  ask  you." 

"  Where  did  he  live  ?"  I  again  asked. 

"  Why,"  said  he,  "  he  lived  no  place  in  particular, 

except  at  the  grocery  of  Mr. ."  This  Mr. 

was  the  keeper  of  a  groggery  of  the  very  lowest  char- 
acter, where  blacks  and  whites  freely  mingled  in  their 
revels,  and  which  had  often  been  presented  as  a  nui- 
sance. 

I  again  asked,  "  Of  what  disease  did  he  die  ?" 


THE     FEARFUL    FUNERAL.  35 

The  corpse.  The  audience.  His  history. 

"Why,"  said  he,  dropping  his  countenance,  and 
lowering  his  voice  almost  to  a  whisper,  "  I  hardly 
know;  but,  between  you  and  I,  he  was  a  pretty 
hard  drinker." 

After  a  few  more  inquiries,  to  which  I  received  an- 
swers in  keeping  with  those  given  above,  I  dismissed 
him,  promising  to  attend  the  funeral  at  five  o'clock. 

At  the  hour  appointed,  I  went  to  the  house  of  death. 
There  were  ten  or  twelve  men  present,  and,  with  two 
exceptions,  they  were  all  drunkards.  I  went  up  to 
the  coarse  pine  coffin,  and  gazed  upon  a  corpse,  not 
pale  and  haggard,  but  bloated,  and  almost  as  black  as 
the  raven's  wing.  There  were  two  brothers  present, 
both  inebriates,  and  as  unfeeling  as  if  the  body  of  a 
beast  lay  dead  before  them.  From  the  undertaker  I 
gained  the  following  narrative  as  to  the  deceased : 

"  He  was  the  son  of  respectable  but  irreligious  pa- 
rents, who,  instead  of  spending  the  Sabbath  in  the 
house  of  (rod,  either  spent  it  in  idleness  or  in  doing  their 
own  work."  When  desecrated,  the '  Sabbath  is  usu- 
ally a  day  of  fearful  temptation.  Sabbath  sins  make 
deep  impressions  on  the  soul.  "  While  yet  young,  he 
became  a  Sabbath  vagrant,  joined  profane  compan- 
ions, acquired  the  habit  of  drinking,  and  so  rapidly 
grew  the  love  of  drink  into  a  ruling  passion,  that  at 
mature  years  he  was  a  confirmed  drunkard.  His  pa- 
rents died,  and  the  portion  of  property  that  fell  to  his 
lot  was  squandered.  And  for  years,"  said  my  infor- 
mant, "  he  has  been  drunk  every  day." 

"  But  how,"  I  asked,  "  did  he  get  the  money  to  pay 
for  the  liquor  ?" 


36  PARISH    PENCILINGS. 

Labor  and  pay.  Inhumanity.  The  service. 

"  He  has  been  employed,"  he  replied,  "  by  Mr. 

to  shoot  squirrels  in  the  woods,  and  to  catch 

water-rats  in  the  marshes ;  and  for  the  skins  of  these 
he  has  been  paid  in  whiskey.  Nobody  would  see  him 
starve,  and  he  usually  slept  in  a  garret  over  the  grog- 
gery.  Yesterday  he  was  taken  sick,  very  sick,  in  the 

grocery ;  Mr.  — : ,  instead  of  giving  him  a  bed, 

turned  him  out  of  the  house.  He  was  then  in  a  dying 
state,  and,  at  a  short  distance  from  the  house,  fell  in 
the  street.  He  was  taken  into  a  negro  hut  and  laid 
on  the  floor,  where  he  died  in  less  -than  an  hour.  The 
negroes  were  very  ignorant  and  superstitious,  and  were 
afraid  to  have  the  corpse  in  their  house.  It  was  car- 
ried to  a  barn.  This  poor  but  pious  family,  hearing 
the  circumstances,  took  the  corpse  to  their  house,  and 
have  made  these  preparations  for  its  burial." 

I  read  a  portion  of  the  Scriptures,  and  for  a  few 
moments  discoursed  to  them  on  the  effects  of  sin ;  I 
dwelt  on  the  hardening  and  fearful  effects  of  intem- 
perance. But  there  was  no  feeling.  I  prayed  with 
them,  but  there  was  no  reverence.  They  all  gazed 
with  a  vacant  stare,  as  if  their  minds  had  evaporated, 
and  as  if  the  fiery  liquid  had  burned  out  their  con- 
sciences. They  were  obviously  past  feeling.  The 
coffin  was  closed  and  placed  in  the  hearse.  We  pro- 
ceeded with  slow  and  solemn  pace  to  the  house  ap- 
pointed for  all  the  living ;  and  a  feeling  of  shame 
came  over  me  as  I  passed  along  the  street,  to  be 
followed  by  half  a  dozen  pair  of  inveterate  topers. 
The  coffin  was  placed  upon  the  bier,  and  was  carried 
by  four  drunkards,  who  were  actually  reeling  under 


THE     FEARFUL     FUNERAL.  37 

The  procession.  The  burial.  The  prayer. 

their  load,  to  a  secluded  spot  in  the  grave-yard,  where, 
without  a  tear  being  shed,  without  a  sigh  being  utter- 
ed, it  was  covered  up  under  the  cold  clods  of  the  valley ; 
and  the  two  brothers  went  back  to  the  house  of  death, 
the  grog-shop,  to  drink,  and  to  die  a  similar  death,  and 
to  go  early  down  to  the  same  ignoble  grave.  The 
others,  after  lingering  for  a  few  moments,  as  if  arrest- 
ed by  the  thought  that  the  grave  would  be  soon  their 
house,  followed.  I  stood  for  a  short  time  over  the 
grave  after  all  had  retired,  pondering  the  deeply-im- 
pressive scenes  through  which  I  had  so  rapidly  passed. 
"  And  is  this,"  said  I  to  myself,  "  the  grave  of  the 
drunkard?"  And  the  prayer,  almost  unconsciously, 
rose  from  my  heart  to  heaven,  "  0  God,  save  my  chil- 
dren's children  to  their  latest  generation  from  making 
such  a  contribution  as  this  to  the  congregation  of  the 
dead." 

As  I  retired  from  the  grave-yard,  the  following  les- 
sons, suggested  and  illustrated  by  this  narrative,  were 
deeply  impressed  on  my  mind : 

1.  How  great  is  the  responsibility  of  parents !  With 
what  moral  certainty  they  form  the  character  of  their 
children  after  the  model  of  then*  own  !  Careless  and 
irreligious  themselves,  their  children  copy  their  exam- 
ple ;  but,  because  destitute  of  then*  firmness  of  charac- 
ter, they  yield  to  every  temptation,  until  they  can  com- 
mit sin  with  greediness.  Were  the  parents  of  this 
young  man,  who  was  laid  down  in  a  drunkard's  grave, 
on  which  no  tear  of  sorrow  has  ever  fallen,  truly  and 
consistently  pious,  how  different  might  have  been  his 
life  and  his  death !  How  many  parents  lay  the  foun- 


38  PARISH    PENCILINGS. 

Parental  responsibility.  Sabbath  observance.  Base  business. 

dation  for  the  temporal  and  eternal  ruin  of  their  chil- 
dren ! 

2.  How  sad  the  effects  which  usually  follow  the  ha- 
bitual violation  of  the  Sabbath !     All  need  the  checks 
and  the  restraints  which  the  due  observance  of  the 
Sabbath  places  upon  our  depravity.     The  habitual  vio- 
lators of  the  Sabbath  are  usually  those  hardened  in  the 
ways  of  sin ;  and  to  become  the  associates  of  such  is 
to  insure  the  end  of  the  proverb,  "  The  companion  of 
fools  shall  be  destroyed."     Had  this  young  man  been 
brought  up  to  "  remember  the  Sabbath  day,"  he  might 
have  been  saved  to  the  cause  of  virtue  and  usefulness, 
and  from  an  early,  ignoble,  and  unknown  grave.     The 
due  observance  of  the  Sabbath  is  alike  necessary  to 
the  attainment  of  temporal  and  spiritual  good. 

3.  How  selfish  and  hard  the  hearts  of  those  who  live 
by  rum !     It  is  a  base  business  to  sell  it  by  small  quan- 
tities for  the  sake  of  making  a  living.     It  is  in  opposi- 
tion to  divine,  and  usually  to  human  law.     And  so 
plainly  is  it  under  the  ban  of  the  world's  reprobation, 
that  but  few,  save  "  the  hardened  wicked,"  engage  in 
it.    And  if  a  man  of  kind  and  generous  nature  engages 
in  it,  his  heart  soon  becomes  a  heart  of  steel.     Mr. 

,  the  keeper  of  the  grocery,  was  naturally  a 

kind  man ;  he  became  a  seller  of  liquor,  against  law, 

by  the  small  measure.     He  kept  and  fed  poor  S 

as  long  as  he  was  able  to  shoot  squirrels  or  rats.    Many 
is  the  day  he  spent  in  the  salt  marshes  to  earn  his 
whiskey.     And  when  his  poor  frame  gave  way  under 
the  vile  work,  the  man  who  did  so  much  to  degrade 
him  turned  him  out  to  die  in  the  street.     There  is  not 


THE     FEARFUL     FUNERAL.  39 

Rumsellers'  deserts.  Intemperance  degrades. 

a  class  of  men  upon  earth  who  deserve  so  little  at  the 
hands  of  their  fellow-men  as  do  these  retailers  of  liquid 
death  by  the  gill ! 

4.  How  degrading  is  the  vice  of  intemperance !  It 
ruins  soul,  body,  and  character.  And  by  elevating  a 
mean  appetite  above  reason,  and  conscience,  and  judg- 
ment, it  degrades  man  to  the  level  of  the  brute.  Here 
was  a  young  man,  of  respectable  parentage,  who,  by 
taking  glass  after  glass,  became  a  drunkard.  Habitu- 
al intemperance  unfitted  him  for  any  business ;  he  be- 
came the  tenant  of  a  low  grocery,  the  fumes  from 
which,  of  a  winter  evening,  were  sickening ;  he  be- 
came the  slave  of  a  low  grocer — for  to  earn  a  glass  of 
whiskey,  he  would  spend  the  day  and  sometimes  the 
night  in  the  salt  marshes  catching  rats.  "When  no 
longer  able  to  earn  his  glass,  he  was  turned  out  to  die. 
After  he  breathed  his  last  in  a  negro  hut,  his  corpse 
was  taken  to  a  barn ;  by  the  charity  of  the  pious  alone 
was  his  dead  body  saved  from  exposure,  and  by  the 
hands  of  drunkards  he  was  carried  to  an  ignoble  grave, 
unwept  and  unregretted.  And  all  this  is  only  the  deg- 
radation which  it  brings  on  the  body !  It  is  an  im- 
mutable law  of  Jehovah  that  no  drunkard  shall  ever 
inherit  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Drunkenness  is  thus  characterized  by  Watson,  an 
old  Puritan  divine :  "  There  is  no  sin  which  doth  more 
efface  God's  image  than  drunkenness.  It  disguiseth 
a  person  and  doth  even  unman  him.  Drunkenness 
makes  him  have  the  throat  of  a  fish,  the  belly  of  a 
swine,  and  the  head  of  an  ass.  Drunkenness  is  the 
shame  of  nature,  the  extinguisher  of  reason,  the  ship- 


40  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

Its  effects  on  the  body.  On  the  soul.  Warning. 

wreck  of  chastity,  and  the  murder  of  conscience. 
Drunkenness  is  hurtful  to  the  body  — the  cup  kills 
more  than  the  cannon.  It  causeth  dropsies,  catarrhs, 
apoplexies ;  it  fills  the  eyes  with  fire,  and  the  legs  with 
water,  and  turns  the  body  into  a  hospital.  But  the 
greatest  hurt  it  doth  is  to  the  soul ;  excess  of  wine 
breeds  the  worm  of  conscience.  The  drunkard  is  sel- 
dom reclaimed  by  repentance,  and  the  ground  of  it  is 
partly  because,  by  this  sin,  the  senses  are  so  enchant- 
ed, the  reason  so  impaired,  and  lust  so  inflamed ;  and 
partly  it  is  judicial,  the  drunkard  being  so  besotted  by 
his  sin,  God  saith  of  him,  as  of  Ephraim,  he  is- joined 
to  his  cups,  let  him  alone ;  let  him  drown  himself  in 
liquor  until  he  scorch  himself  in  fire." 

0  reader,  beware  of  drunkenness ;  it  is  a  degrading, 
damning  sin.  If  you  have  already  so  far  yielded  to 
temptation  as  to  have  acquired  a  relish  for  it,  resolve 
now  never  to  taste  again  the  fiery  liquid.  Remember 
the  fearful  funeral  of  the  drunkard. 


THE     BRILLIANT     STAR.  41 

• 

A  wintry  sky.  Its  beauty.  An  incident. 


THE  BRILLIANT  STAR. 

WHO,  in  our  northern  latitudes,  has  not  often  gazed 
with  wonder  and  admiration  upon  the  sky,  when  a 
clear,  cold  wintry  night  adds  new  beauty  to  its  mag- 
nificent scenery  ?  When  the  atmosphere  is  cloudless,, 
and  the  cold  is  severe,  as  if  to  compensate  for  the  des- 
olation that  reigns  on  the  earth,  the  heavens  put  on 
new  beauty,  and  the  moon  and  the  stars  shine  with 
unwonted  and  sparkling  brilliancy  ;  and  stupid  must 
be  the  mind,  and  senseless  the  soul,  that,  canopied  by 
such  a  wintry  sky,  does  not  ponder,  wonder,  and  adore. 
We  can  readily  believe  that  it  was  while  gazing  upon 
such  a  sky  David  was  inspired  to  write  the  psalm  in 
which  he  thus  expresses  the  emotions  that  well  up 
within  him :  "  When  I  consider  thy  heavens,  the  work 
of  thy  fingers,  the  moon  and  the  stars  which  thou  hast 
ordained,  what  is  man,  that  thou  art  mindful  of  him, 
and  the  son  of  man,  that  thou  visitest  him  ?"  He  is 
overpowered  by  the  scenes  of  grandeur  which  surround 
him,  and  wonders  that  he  is  not  forgotten  amid  the 
cares  which  an  empire  so  vast  devolves  upon  the  High 
and  lofty  One. 

It  was  on  such  a  wintry  night  that  the  following 
incident  occurred:  The  sky  was  cloudless,  the  cold 
was  intense,  the  very  air  seemed  frozen  into  stillness ; 
the  earth  was  covered  with  a  deep  snow,  which  added 


42  PARISH    PENCILINGS. 

A  young  lady.  The  brilliant  star.  Humming. 

at  once  to  the  brilliancy  and  dreariness  of  the  scenery. 
There  sat  by  a  cheerful  fire,  in  one  of  our  rural  vil- 
lages, a  young  lady  of  fine  intellect,  and  highly  culti- 
vated. Although  religiously  educated,  and  often  deeply 
solicitous  about  her  salvation,  she  was,  up  to  this  time, 
a  stranger  to  the  grace  of  God,  and  was  on  this  even- 
ing more  than  usually  careless.  Attracted  by  some 
noise  in  the  street,  she  went  to  the  window.  Her  at- 
tention was  immediately  arrested  by  the  remarkable 
beauty  of  the  heavens,  and  by  the  sparkling  of  the 
stars.  She  stood  gazing  on  the  splendid  panorama  in 
mute  admiration.  One  star  of  remarkable  brilliancy 
attracted  her  eye.  The  more  she  gazed  on  it  the  more 
she  admired  it,  and  as  she  gazed,  it  seemed  to  increase 
in  size  and  brilliancy,  until  it  filled  the  field  of  vision 
— until  the  lesser  lamps  which  hung  around  it  went 
out  in  the  effulgence  of  its  light.  This  glowing,  brill- 
iant, admired  star  at  once  suggested  the  "  Star  of 
Bethlehem ;"  and,  almost  unconscious  to  herself,  she 
commenced  humming  the  well-known  lines  of  Kirke 
White: 

"  When  marshalled  on  the  nightly  plain, 

The  glittering  host  bestud  the  sky, 
One  star  alone  of  all  the  train 

Can  fix  the  shiner's  wandering  eye." 

Soon  the  star  in  the  sky  was  forgotten  amid  the 
thoughts  concerning  Christ  that  rushed  in  upon  her. 
The  Divine  Spirit,  at  times,  performs  its  peculiar  work 
with  great  rapidity.  Her  mind  wandered  from  the 
star  in  the  sky  to  the  "  Star  of  Bethlehem,"  then  to 
Jesus  Christ.  The  question  rapidly  arose,  Why  did 


THE     BRILLIANT     STAR.  43 

The  "  Star  of  Bethlehem."  Led  to  Christ. 

Christ  come  in  the  flesh  ?  why  did  he  die  ?  Her  intel- 
ligent mind  and  her  right  education  promptly  suggest- 
ed the  true  answer,  He  came  to  save  shiners,  and  he 
died  the  just  for  the  unjust.  "With  the  rapidity  of  a 
mind  waked  up  by  the  Spirit  to  a  due  sense  of  the 
guilt  and  danger  of  an  unconverted  soul,  she  ran  to 
the  conclusion,  "  Then  I  am  a  sinner,  and  I  need  a 
Savior."  And  with  these  two  thoughts  written  upon 
her  soul  as  with  the  point  of  a  diamond,  she  retired 
from  the  window  to  her  chair  by  the  fire,  the  arrows 
of  conscience  piercing  her  through  and  through.  What- 
ever was  the  character  of  her  previous  convictions, 
these  were  obviously  the  work  of  the  Spirit.  She 
sought  mercy  in  that  way  in  which  the  Lord  has  never 
failed  to  grant  it  —  in  the  way  of  repentance  toward 
G-od,  and  faith  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  The  light 
of  the  "  Star  of  Bethlehem"  illumined  her  soul.  She 
connected  herself  with  the  Church  of  Christ,  and,  amid 
scenes  of  activity,  and  usefulness,  and  happiness,  she 
often  sang  as  to  that  star, 

"  It  was  my  guide,  my  light,  my  all, 

It  bade  my  dark  forebodings  cease  ; 
And  through  the  storm  and  danger's  thrall 
It  led  me  to  the  port  of  peace." 

This  incident  teaches  many  lessons  of  great  practi- 
cal importance,  to  a  few  of  which  we  ask  the  serious 
attention  of  the  reader. 

1.  It  teaches  us  how  various  are  the  means  by 
which  Grod  accomplishes  his  own  purposes  of  grace. 
While  the  preaching  of  the  Grospel  is  the  great  means 
for  leading  sinners  to  a  Savior,  it  is  not  the  only  means. 


44  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

Various  means  of  grace.  The  only  question.  The  Spirit  needed. 

A  Jewish  maid,  and  a  slave  in  the  family  of  Naaman, 
was  the  cause  of  his  washing  in  the  Jordan,  and  of 
his  cure  from  the  disease  of  leprosy,  and,  as  is  believed, 
of  his  conversion ;  the  Church  is  indebted  for  Samuel 
to  the  prayers  of  his  mother ;  Paul  was  arrested  by  a 
voice  from  heaven ;  Luther  was  converted  by  the  read- 
ing of  the  Bible ;  Newton,  during  a  storm  at  sea ; 
multitudes  by  the  reading  of  a  book  or  a  tract ;  and 
this  young  woman  by  the  brilliant  shining  of  a  star 
on  a  wintry  night.  If  "  the  invisible  things  of  him 
from  the  creation  of  the  world  are  clearly  seen,  being 
understood  by  the  things  that  are  made,  even  his  eter- 
nal power  and  godhead,"  may  he  not  use  all  the  things 
which  he  has  made  as  agents  to  direct  men  unto  the 
Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world  ? 
And  we  believe  that  a  true  history  of  the  conversion 
of  men  would  show  that  all  the  things  which  God  has 
made  have  been  made  subservient  to  the  accomplish- 
ment of  his  purposes  of  mercy  and  grace.  None  should 
therefore  be  anxious  as  to  the  agency  employed ;  the 
great  question  is  as  to  the  result,  Have  I  been  led  to 
Christ? 

2.  It  teaches  us  the  need  of  the  Spirit  to  render 
means  effectual  to  salvation.  Without  it  no  means 
can  arrest  the  wandering  mind  or  change  the  heart ; 
with  it,  the  most  feeble  means  are  effectual  to  produce 
these  results.  This  all  are  made  to  feel.  The  most 
faithful  and  powerful  preaching  is  in  vain  without  the 
Spirit ;  without  it,  in  the  use  of  means,  we  are  as  one 
that  beateth  the  air ;  with  it,  the  most  feeble  means 
are  powerful  to  the  conversion  of  the  most  hardened 


THE     BRILLIANT     STAR.  45 

The  needful  prayer.  PowerAil  teaching. 

and  hopeless.  This  young  female  had  heard  many  a 
sermon  —  was  often  deeply  impressed  ;  of  the  truth 
of  religion  she  was  fully  convinced.  And  although 
brought  up  amid  the  very  sunlight  of  truth,  never  was 
she  led  to  believe  with  the  heart  unto  salvation  until 
her  attention  was  arrested  by  the  bright  shining  of  that 
star  on  a  wintry  night.  Surely  Paul  may  plant,  and 
Apollos  may  water,  but  it  is  Grod  alone  that  can  give 
the  increase.  And  as  it  is  the  Spirit  that  takes  of  the 
things  of  Christ,  and  that  shows  them  unto  us,  the  cry 
of  the  Church,  and  of  every  individual  to  whom  the 
news  of  this  salvation  is  sent,  should  be  for  the  Spirit. 
Then  the  glorious  sun,  the  silvery  moon,  the  twinkling 
star,  the  little  tract,  the  larger  volume,  the  stately  tome, 
will  all  be  found  co- working  with  the  Bible  and  the 
preaching  of  the  Grospel  to  direct  sinners  unto  the 
Lamb  of  Grod  that  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world. 
Then  truths  are  taught  by  stones,  sermons  are  preach- 
ed by  brooks,  every  star  in  the  sky  is  associated  with 
the  Star  of  Bethlehem,  and  Grod  is  seen  every  where. 

3.  It  teaches  us  how  inexcusable  are  sinners  for 
not  believing  in  Christ.  If  the  law  and  the  prophets 
all  point  to  his  coming,  the  law  and  the  prophets,  and 
the  apostles  and  evangelists,  all  teach  us  that  it  is  only 
through  faith  in  him  we  can  be  saved.  Conscience 
unites  with  revelation  in  teaching  us  that  we  are  sin- 
ners. And  the  clearest  deductions  of  our  minds  unite 
with  conscience  and  revelation  in  teaching  us  that  he 
that  believeth  in  the  Son  hath  life,  and  he  that  believ- 
eth  not  in  the  Son  shall  not  see  life,  but  the  wrath  of 
Grod  abideth  on  him.  ~And  to  the  Savior  of  shiners 


46  PARISH    PENCILINGS. 


The  unbeliever  without  excuse. 


Grod  is  directing  us  by  all  the  things  which  he  has 
made — by  all  the  occurring  providences  around  us — 
by  all  the  means  of  grace  which  he  has  appointed. 
And  it  the  light  of  that  star  brilliantly  shining  in  a 
wintry  sky  led  that  careless  mind  to  the  Star  of  Beth- 
lehem— thence  to  the  coming  and  to  the  cross  of  Christ 
— thence  to  her  own  sinfulness  and  to  her  need  of  a 
Savior  —  thence  to  the  exercise  of  faith  in  him,  what 
can  excuse  your  unbelief  when  truth  and  duty  stand 
revealed  before  you  in  the  meridian  light  of  heaven — 
when  the  cross  of  Christ  rises  before  you  as  the  only 
hope  of  the  sinful — when  the  Spirit  and  the  bride  are 
uniting  their  voices  with  those  of  the  Bible,  and  of  the 
ministry,  and  of  your  mind,  and  of  your  conscience, 
entreating,  imploring  you  to  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  that  you  may  be  saved  ? 


THE     ONE     TALENT     SANCTIFIED.  47 

What  habit  and  education,  and  of  the  Spirit.  A  wish. 


THE  ONE  TALENT  SANCTIFIED. 

AMONG  individuals  religiously  educated,  and  brought 
into  the  Church  under  the  ordinary  means  of  grace,  it 
is  at  times  difficult  to  discriminate  "between  what  is 
the  result  of  education  and  habit,  and  what  of  the 
teachings  and  influence  of  the  Divine  Spirit.  The  line 
which  separates  these  it  is  difficult,  perhaps  impossi- 
ble, clearly  to  draw.  A  religious  education  is  a  pow- 
erful means  of  grace  ;  and  so  gently  and  quietly  do  the 
rain  and  dew  of  the  Spirit  descend  upon  the  seed  thus 
sown  in  the  youthful  mind,  that  oftentimes  the  re- 
sult, which  is  love  to  God,  would  seem  to  be  a  fruit, 
not  of  spiritual  agency,  but  of  natural  growth ;  and 
oftentimes,  on  self-examination,  the  most  intelligently 
pious  find  themselves  in  difficulty  and  in  darkness  be- 
cause of  their  inability  to  distinguish  between  the  in- 
fluence of  education,  theory,  and  custom,  and  the  work 
of  the  Spirit  on  their  hearts  and  lives.  This  truth, 
every  where  felt  in  the  experience  of  the  pious,  often 
gave  rise  to  the  wish  that  I  might  become  acquainted 
with  somebody  who,  on  the  subject  of  religion,  knew 
nothing  but  what  was  taught  by  the  Spirit.  I  sup- 
posed there  would  be  a  freshness  and  a  simplicity  about 
the  exercises  of  such  that  would  place  them  in  broad 
contrast  with  those  which  are  more  or  less  fashioned 
by  our  theoretic  views  of  divine  truth,  and  by  the 


48  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

A  greeting.  The  person.  At  Sunday-school. 

habits  and  forms  into  which  we  are  educated.  And 
of  such  an  individual  I  became,  on  my  second  settle- 
ment, the  pastor. 

On  Sabbath  morning,  as  I  was  retiring  from  the 
church,  after  preaching  my  first  sermon  to  my  new 
charge,  I  was  arrested  by  a  man  in  the  belfry  in  a 
way  peculiar  and  striking.  His  garb  was  plain — his 
form  of  the  middle  size — his  countenance  had  a  vague, 
but  yet  a  pleased  expression.  "Without  waiting  for  an 
introduction,  he  came  forward  and  earnestly  extended 
his  hand  to  grasp  mine.  The  pressure  was  painfully 
cordial ;  and  while  one  hand  pressed  mine,  and  the 
other  his  own  bosom,  he  said,  "  I  thank  you  for  that 
sermon ;  it  has  done  my  soul  good."  His  voice  was 
indistinct  and  husky,  and  his  appearance  not  prepos- 
sessing; but  there  was  a  heartfelt  cordiality  in  his 
greeting  which  impressed  me  with  his  thorough  sin- 
cerity. On  the  next  Sabbath,  and  on  the  next,  he  met 
and  greeted  me  in  the  same  way.  As  he  had  reached 
mid-life,  I  marked  him  as  a  peculiar  character. 

I  soon  visited  the  Sabbath-school ;  and  the  very  first 
person  that  arrested  my  attention  was  this  man,  sitting 
in  one  of  the  classes  surrounded  by  young  boys,  and 
reciting  with  them  his  lesson.  My  curiosity  being  ex- 
cited, I  went  and  stood  by  his  class,  and  found  him 
spelling  his  way  through  a  verse  of  one  of  the  Gospels, 
and  obviously  without  understanding  the  sentiment 
which  it  taught.  On  inquiry,  I  learned  that  he  was 
the  son  of  Christian  parents ;  that  his  mother,  who 
was  a  woman  of  marked  piety,  had  been  deceased  for 
years ;  and  that,  because  of  the  great  feebleness  of  his 


THE     ONE     TALENT     SANCTIFIED.  49 

Desire  quickened.  His  history.  His  one  reason. 

intellect,  he  could  never  be  taught  to  read.  As  the 
name  of  the  Savior  was  constantly  on  his  lips,  as  his 
piety  seemed  to  be  of  the  most  ardent  character,  my 
curiosity  was  greatly  quickened  to  learn  the  details  of 
his  ueligious  history,  which  is  briefly  as  follows : 

As  his  mental  debility  early  developed  itself,  his 
pious  mother  became  the  more  solicitous  that  he  should 
be  taught  of  the  Spirit  of  (rod.  Daily  did  'she  pray 
with  him  ;  and,  selecting  the  simplest  truths  of  the 
Gospel,  daily  did  she  seek  to  impress  them  on  his  mind. 
But  if  his  mind  was  feeble  in  sense,  his  heart  was 
strong  in  depravity,  and  these  means  were  ineffectual. 
After  he  reached  mature  years,  there  occurred  a  gentle 
refreshing  of  the  Spirit.  A  meeting  for  conference 
with  the  serious  and  inquiring  was  appointed,  and  he 
was  among  those  who  attended.  From  week  to  week 
his  seat  was  never  vacant.  "When  candidates  for  the 
communion  of  the  Church  were  invited  to  meet  with 
the  session,  he  was  among  those  that  attended.  "When 
asked  if  he  hoped  he  was  a  Christian,  his  emphatic  re- 
ply was,  "  I  hope  I  am."  About  the  doctrines  of  the 
Church  he  knew  absolutely  nothing,  and  when  ques- 
tioned in  reference  to  them,  he  made  no  reply.  He 
could  give  no  reason  for  the  hope  which  was  in  him. 
When  asked  why  he  hoped  he  was  a  Christian,  laying 
his  hands  on  his  heart,  he  answered,  "  I  feel  that  I  am 
here."  With  some  fears,  he  was  admitted  to  the 
Lord's  Supper,  and  the  whole  of  his  subequent  life 
demonstrated  that  he  was  born  from  above. 

In  the  year  that  he  made  a  profession  of  religion 
his  mother  died.  Feeble  as  was  his  mind,  the  impres- 

C 


50  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

His  heaven.  His  one  topic.  His  one  hymn. 

sions  which  she  made  upon  it  were  never  erased.  His 
very  highest  conception  of  heaven  was  that  it  was  the 
place  where  his  mother  went  to  see  Jesus,  and  his 
highest  ecstacy  was  induced  by  the  thought  that  when 
he  died  he  would  go  to  heaven  to  see  Jesus  and  his 
own  dear  mother. 

There  was  but  one  thought  which  seemed  to  enter 
his  soul,  and  that  entirely  occupied  it.  This  was  con- 
stantly obvious.  Preach  on  what  subject  I  might, 
nothing  was  understood,  nothing  felt,  unless  it  was  the 
love  of  Christ.  For  years,  rarely  a  Sabbath  passed 
away  without  his  greeting  me  in  the  belfry ;  but  noth- 
ing was  said  about  the  sermons  unless  they  dwelt  upon 
the  love  of  Christ.  Then  his  usual  expression  was, 
"  That  sermon  is  good  to  my  soul ;  it  told  me  about 
the  love  of  Christ." 

He  frequented  prayer-meetings  sustained  by  the 
young  people  and  for  their  mutual  benefit.  One  of 
his  weaknesses  was  to  make  exhortations  in  these 
meetings,  and  until  they  became  an  annoyance.  But 
he  never  succeeded  in  getting  beyond  one  idea ;  and 
upon  that — "the  love  of 'Christ,  the  love  of  Christ" — 
he  would  ring  changes  for  fifteen  minutes  together. 
That  one  idea  occupied  and  filled  his  whole  soul.  It 
was  the  one  constant  theme  of  his  conversation  every 
where.  The  only  hymn  that  ever  seemed  to  have 
impressed  him,  or  whose  singing  he  ever  seemed  to 
enjoy,  was  that  called  "  Loving  Kindness."  How- 
ever dull  and  uninterested  he  seemed  to  be  in  a 
prayer-meeting,  the  moment  the  first  notes  of  the 
hymn 


THE  ONE  TALENT  SANCTIFIED.      51 

At  the  prayer-meeting.  His  zeal.  His  visits. 

"  Awake,  my  soul,  to  joyful  lays, 
And  sing  thy  great  Redeemer's  praise," 

fell  upon  his  ear,  his  countenance  brightened  up,  and 
his  whole  soul  was  in  sympathy  with  the  song  of 
praise.  And  when  in  a  social  meeting  which  did  not 
greatly  interest  him,  his  peculiar  voice  was  often  heard 
saying,  "  Sing  Loving  Kindness." 

His  zeal,  though  not  always  according  to  knowl- 
edge, was  of  the  purest  character,  and  knew  no  relax- 
ation. Was  any  person  sick  in  his  neighborhood  ?  He 
was  among  the  first  to  find  it  out  and  to  visit  the  sick- 
bed. And  feeble  as  was  his  comprehension  of  truth, 
and  broken  and  repetitious  as  were  his  prayers,  I  have 
often  heard  the  sick  speak  of  the  comforts  which  they 
received  from  his  visits.  He  often  preceded  the  min- 
ister and  the  elder — often  conveyed  to  them  the  infor- 
mation of  sickness  and  affliction,  and  solicited  their 
attention ;  and  often  prayed  and  exhorted  where  their 
services  might  not  be  kindly  received.  The  perfect 
confidence  entertained  by  all  in  his  sincerity  induced 
them  to  forget  his  extreme  feebleness,  to  overlook  what 
would  be  regarded  as  intrusion  in  others,  and  to  put 
the  best  possible  construction  on  all  that  he  did.  I 
heard  a  profane  scoffer  say,  after  recovering  from  a 
sick-bed  on  which  he  had  been  often  visited  by  this 
man,  "  Well,  if  there  is  a  Christian  upon  earth,  it  is 
Uncle  Nehemiah."  More  than  once,  when  his  minis- 
ter was  sick  and  in  affliction,  did  he  come  and  ask  the 
privilege  of  praying  with  him  and  his  family.  Such 
was  his  life  for  years  together. 

And  in  full  keeping  with  his  life  was  his  death. 


52  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

His  death.  A  pious  mother.  Regeneration. 

During  the  protracted  sickness  which,  brought  his  days 
to  their  close,  I  frequently  visited  him.  There  was  an 
unshaken  confidence  in  Christ — a  cloudless  enjoyment 
of  the  light  of  his  countenance ;  the  love  of  Christ  was 
his  constant  theme.  The  very  last  words  that  he  ever 
uttered  in  my  hearing  were  about  going  to  heaven  to 
see  Jesus  Christ  and  his  dear  mother. 

There  are  a  few  truths  which  this  narrative  of  the 
life  and  death  of  "  Uncle  Nehemiah,"  as  he  was  famil- 
iarly called,  forcibly  teach  and  illustrate. 

1.  It  teaches  us  how  deep  and  durable  are  the  im- 
pressions which  may  be  made  on  the  minds  of  her 
children  by  a  pious  mother.     Here  was  a  mind,  be- 
cause of  its  feebleness,  difficult  of  impression ;  yet  a 
pious  mother  so  impressed  it,  so  engraved  her  own 
image  upon  it,  as  that  nothing  could  erase  her  impres- 
sions or  image.     How  deeply  must  it  have  been  im- 
pressed with  a  sense  of  her  piety,  when  its  highest 
idea  of  heaven  was  that  it  was  the  home  of  Jesus  and 
his  mother !     "What  might  the  sons  of  the  Church  be, 
if  all  their  mothers  were  like  the  mother  of  Nehemiah ! 

2.  It  illustrates  the  truth  of  the  great  doctrine  of 
regeneration.     This  consists,  not  in  submission  to  the 
ordinances  and  forms  of  religion,  but  in  being  created 
anew  in  Christ  Jesus.     In  his  youth,  Nehemiah  was 
wayward,  and,  like  persons  of  mental  feebleness  gener- 
ally, greatly  under  the  influence  of  passion.     Submis- 
sion to  ordinances  and  forms  could  not  correct  this; 
the  formal  Jew,  the  Papist,  the  Mohammedan,  can  go 
out  from  their   most   solemn   ritual   observances   as 
wicked  and  as  turbulent  as   ever.      Nothing  but  a 


THE     ONE     TALENT     SANCTIFIED.  53 

The  saving  grace.  The  polar  star. 

change  at  the  great  spring  of  life  can  permanently 
change  the  life.  There  was  no  intellectual  power  here 
to  moralize — no  judgment  to  strengthen — no  reason  to 
wake  up  to  its  duty  —  no  capacity  to  instruct.  And 
yet  there  is  a  great,  obvious,  and  permanent  change. 
How  account  for  it  ?  In  no  way  save  on  the  ground 
of  a  change  of  heart  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

3.  It  also  illustrates  what  is  the  great  saving  truth 
of  the  Gospel.  It  is  a  simple  view  of  Christ  as  the 
Savior  of  sinners,  and  a  simple  resting  upon  him  as 
our  Savior.  Other  truths  are  important — they  are  im- 
portant to  a  well-balanced  faith  and  life,  but  the  great, 
essential  truth  is  faith  in  Christ.  "  He  that  belie veth 
in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  saved."  This  is  so 
plain,  that  a  wayfaring  man,  though  a  fool,  need  not 
err  respecting  it.  When  this  faith  is  wrought  in  us 
by  the  Holy  Ghost,  then,  whether  we  possess  the  ex- 
pansive intellect  of  Paul,  or  the  feeble  one  of  Nehe- 
miah,  Christ  is  the  polar  star  of  the  soul. 

Oh,  if  all  the  intellectual  endowments  of  the  profess- 
ors of  the  religion  of  Christ  were  consecrated  to  his 
service,  as  was  the  one  talent  of  this  feeble  child  of 
heaven,  how  soon  would  the  wilderness  and  solitary 
portions  of  earth  rejoice,  and  the  desert  blossom  as  the 
rose  !  How  hath  God  chosen  the  foolish  things  of  the 
world  to  confound  the  mighty ! 


54  P  A  U  J  S  H     P  K  N  C  1  I,  I  N  G  S. 


Their  mixed  character.  A  soldier's  heart. 


THE  DANGER  OF  DELAY. 

"  I  hope  my  time  will  come  yet." 

A  FEW  years  ago,  many  of  the  veterans  of  the  war 
of  the  Revolution  were  found  scattered  over  the  East- 
ern, Middle,  and  Southern  States,  the  remnants  of  that 
noble  generation  who  plighted  their  lives,  property,  and 
sacred  honor  to  secure  the  liberty  of  our  country. 
Among  these  were  men  who  went  from  their  knees  to 
the- battle  strife,  and  who  returned  from  the  field  of 
their  victory  or  defeat  to  their  closets,  to  lay  down 
their  palms  and  laurels  before  Grod,  or  most  humbly  to 
deplore  the  sins  which  caused  them  to  flee  before  the 
enemy,  and  to  implore  the  interposition  of  Almighty 
power  in  the  next  conflict  to  which  they  should  be 
called.  Among  them,  also,  were  men  who  carried  with 
them  through  all  their  subsequent  life  the  vices  ac- 
quired in  the  camp,  and  that  indifference  to  religion, 
which,  alas  !  so  frequently  accompanies  the  profession 
of  arms.  The  heart  in  which  those  stern  and  tumult- 
uous passions  reside  which  fit  man  for  a  brave  soldier, 
and  which  are  nurtured  into  a  vigorous  growth  by 
actual  and  hard  service,  is  usually  a  heart  difficult  to 
be  impressed  with  the  great  truths  of  the  Gospel. 

There  was  in  my  congregation,  when  I  became  its 
pastor,  one  of  these  noble  men,  far  advanced  in  life,  in 
whom  I  became  quite  interested.  When  I  first  saw 


THE     DANGER     OF     DELAY.  55 

An  aged  patriot.  Old  age.  Exhortation. 

him  he  had  passed  his  fourscore  years,  and,  although 
exceedingly  feeble,  his  large  frame  and  his  flashing  eye 
bore  abundant  testimony  to  what  he  once  was.  Al- 
though in  private  life  a  most  amiable  and  inoffensive 
man,  he  indulged  too  freely  in  strong  drink,  and  was 
utterly  careless  as  to  his  future  state.  In  my  occa- 
sional interviews  with  him,  I  found  him  always  ready 
to  converse  on  topics  pertaining  to  the  war  of  our  In- 
dependence, but  upon  religious  topics  he  was  utterly 
silent,  save  in  assenting  or  dissenting  by  a  "yes"  or 
"no"  to  my  questions. 

Hearing  that  he  was  quite  sick,  and  rapidly  ap- 
proaching the  close  of  his  long  life,  I  hastened  to  see 
him.  It  was  on  a  cold  day  in  early  winter.  I  found 
him  bolstered  up  in  a  large  armed-chair,  and  covered 
with  warm  clothing,  and  sitting  in  front  of  a  fire  to- 
ward which  he  was  a  little  inclined,  sustaining  him- 
self with  a  staff  which  he  grasped  with  his  tremulous 
hands.  A  more  striking  illustration  of  the  utter  fee- 
bleness to  which  age  may  reduce  the  strongest  frame 
I  never  saw.  The  suns  of  almost  ninety  years  had 
now  rolled  over  him ;  and  although  utterly  helpless  as 
to  his  body,  his  mind  was  clear  and  collected.  I  sat 
by  his  side,  and  as  kindly  and  tenderly,  but  yet  as 
pointedly  as  I  could,  I  spoke  to  him  of  sin,  and  of  death, 
and  of  judgment,  and  of  salvation  through  faith  in  the 
finished  work  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  assented  to  all  I 
said.  I  told  him  that  the  sands  in  his  glass  were  al- 
most run — that  the  grave  must  soon  be  made  his  house 
— and  I  sought  to  impress  upon  him  the  infinite  need 
there  was  of  employing  the  last  and  rapidly  waning 


56  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Assents.  Immediate  duty  pressed.  The  reply. 

hour  of  life  in  securing  the  salvation  of  his  soul.  I 
told  him  of  Manasseh,  who  in  old  age  lifted  up  his 
bloody  hands  for  mercy  to  heaven,  and  found  it.  I  told 
him  of  the  dying  thief,  who,  in  the  agonies  of  death, 
implored  mercy  from  a  Savior,  and  received  it.  Hop- 
ing from  his  appearance  that  I  had  excited  a  little  emo- 
tion, I  asked  him  directly,  Do  you  feel  that  you  are  a 
sinner  ?  "0  yes,"  he  replied.  "  Do  you  think  that 
you  can  go  to  heaven  without  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  ?"  I 
again  asked  him.  He  hesitated  a  moment,  hut  em- 
phatically replied  "  No."  Feeling  that  I  had  now  a 
ground  upon  which  I  could  strongly  press  home  im- 
mediate duty,  I  again  asked  him,  "Why  not  commit 
your  sinful  soul  this  moment  into  the  hands  of  Jesus 
Christ,  who  says  to  you  as  well  as  to  all  men,  '  Him 
that  cometh  unto  me  I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out  ?'  " 

He  hesitated  for  a  few  moments.  I  resolved  not  to 
break  the  silence.  I  watched  every  movement  of  his 
countenance  to  see  if  I  could  read  the  emotions  of  his 
soul.  Feeling  that  I  was  waiting  for  a  reply  to  my 
last  question,  he  made  a  slight  effort  to  rise  from  his 
inclined  position,  and  finally  said,  in  a  low  and  tremu- 
lous voice,  "  I  hope  my  time  will  come  yet !"  Never 
did  I  hear  a  sentence  fall  from  human  lips  which  more 
deeply  affected  me,  or  which  has  been  more  constantly 
before  my  mind.  It  swept  from  me  at  once  the  fond 
hopes  I  was  beginning  to  indulge  that  he  yet  might  be 
saved — it  seemed  to  ring  the  very  death-knell  of  his 
soul.  Groing  on  to  ninety  years — unable  to  get  up  or 
lie  down  of  himself — with  his  grave  just  before  him — 
confessing  his  belief  in  all  the  great  truths  of  the  Gros- 


THE     DANGER     OP     DELAY.  57 

The  time  came  not.  Death.  Deceptive  hope. 

pel,  and  yet,  when  pressed  to  lay  hold  on  Christ  as  an 
all-sufficient  Savior,  turning  away  from  eternal  life, 
saying,  "  I  hope  my  time  will  come  yet !"  The  delu- 
sion seemed  awful ! 

But  that  time  never  came.  He  lingered  on  a  few 
weeks.  One  spring  of  life  failed  after  another.  Soon 
all  access  to  his  mind  was  closed ;  and  after  lingering 
in  perfect  unconsciousness  of  ah1  that  was  passing 
around  him  for  a  few  days,  his  immortal  spirit  went 
up  to  the  judgment.  His  hope  was  as  the  spider's 
web.  His  time  never  came. 

The  incident  teaches  many  important  lessons  worthy 
the  serious  consideration  of  every  thinking  man. 

1.  It  teaches  us  the  extent  to  which  this  fallacious 
hope  prevails.  "We  find  it  on  the  lips  of  youth,  who, 
although  persuaded  of  the  truth  of  religion,  will  not 
surrender  the  pursuit  of  unsatisfying  pleasure  to  em- 
brace Christ.  It  is  on  the  tongue  of  those  in  mid-life, 
who  are  so  much  concerned  in  the  things  of  a  day  as 
to  have  no  time  for  the  things  of  eternity.  And  we 
find  it  on  the  faltering  tongue  of  old  age,  when  the 
candle  of  life,  burned  down  to  the  socket,  is  emitting 
its  last  lurid  rays.  Although  the  excuse  of  a  heart  in 
love  with  sin  and  averse  to  Grod,  yet  it  deceives  those 
who  indulge  it,  because  often  uttered  seriously,  and 
because  fostering  the  expectation  of  future  amend- 
ment. But  the  worst  of  all  devils  is  the  devil  who,  to 
gain  his  purpose,  puts  on  the  garments  of  an  angel  of 
light.  He  is  emphatically  the  Deceiver.  By  the  hook 
whose  barb  is  concealed  under  the  gilded  bait  of  future 
amendment,  he  draws  souls  to  perdition.  Infidelity 

C2 


58  PARISH     PENCIL  INGS. 

The  man-slayer.  Ignis  fatuus.  Expel  the  deceiver. 

and  open  wickedness  have  slain  their  thousands,  but 
"  I  hope  my  time  will  come  yet"  has  slain  and  is  slay- 
ing its  tens  of  thousands.  Through  every  day  on 
which  the  sun  shines  upon  our  world,  it  is  making 
fearful  additions  to  the  number  of  the  lost. 

2.  It  teaches  us  the  deceptiveness  of  this  hope.  "  I 
hope  my  time  will  come  yet."  No  time  is  fixed.  No 
resolution  is  made.  Every  thing  is  left  indefinite.  No 
barriers  are  thrown  up  against  the  encroachments  of 
sin.  No  position  is  taken  against  the  wiles  of  the  ad- 
versary. And  all  this  time  depravity  is  fortifying  it- 
self in  the  heart,  and  Satan  is  multiplying  the  cords 
that  bind  us  to  sin,  and  is  casting  up  new  difficulties 
in  the  way  of  our  return  to  God.  "  I  hope  my  time 
will  come  yet."  And  that  time,  like  the  hour  of  death, 
is  a  retreating  point  before  us.  It  seems  equally  dis- 
tant at  sixty  as  at  twenty.  Like  that  luminous  me- 
teor, the  ignis  fatuus,  the  offspring  of  corruption, 
which  retreats  before  its  pursuers,  and  which  allures 
them  to  destruction,  it  retreats  as  rapidly  as  we  follow 
it.  It  is  as  far  before  us  in  old  age  as  in  youth.  When 
our  feet  are  upon  the  crumbling  verge  of  the  stream 
of  death,  it  is  flaming  brightly  on  the  opposite  bank. 
In  our  pursuit  of  it  we  fall  into  the  stream,  and,  after 
a  few  fruitless  struggles  to  reach  the  shore,  we  are 
carried  down  into  the  ocean  of  eternity. 

And  this  is  the  deceptive  hope  which  many  are  in- 
dulging. And  although  it  deceives  from  -youth  to 
manhood,  and  from  manhood  to  old  age,  how  few,  oh 
how  few  expel  the  deceiver !  How  rarely  we  again 
trust  the  man  that  has  deceived  us  once,  and  yet  we 


THE     DANGER     OF     DELAY.  59 

Sinners  cheat  themselves.  The  thing  to  be  sought  first. 

rely  upon  this  hope,  which  has  only  deceived  us  for 
threescore  years  and  ten,  as  implicitly  as  if  it  had  ful- 
filled to  the  letter  all  it  ever  promised !  Indeed,  it  so 
bewitches  man  that  he  is  absolutely  pleased  with  the 
dexterity  with  which  he  cheats  himself  out  of  heaven, 
by  putting  off  repentance  to  a  retreating  point  which 
he  never  reaches.  It  only  asks  for  the  present,  it  ever 
points  to  the  future ;  it  asks  for  to-day,  and  points  to 
to-morrow ;  it  asks  for  this  year,  and  points  to  the 
next.  And  thus,  by  piecemeal,  it  cheats  us  out  of  all 
time,  and  finally  hurls  us,  without  repentance  and  un- 
prepared, into  eternity.  Dear  reader,  are  you  one  of 
those  who  indulge  this  fallacious  hope  ?  Oh,  expel  it 
from  your  bosom,  else  it  will  prove  the  assassin  of  your 
soul ! 

3.  It  shows  us  the  importance  of  improving  the 
present  time  to  secure  the  great  end  of  our  existence. 
That  end  is  the  salvation  of  the  soul  and  the  glory  bf 
Grod.  If  the  soul  is  lost,  life  is  a  lost  adventure ;  if 
the  soul  is  lost,  all  is  lost.  Hence  the  emphatic,  the 
infinite  importance  of  the  precept  of  the  Savior,  "  Seek 
first  the  kingdom  of  Grod  and  his  righteousness." 
The  due  improvement  of  present  advantages  is  the 
great  lesson  which  Grod  and  the  world  are  teaching 
their  votaries.  Grod  says,  as  to  the  soul,  "Now  is  the 
accepted  time."  "  To-day,  if  you  will  hear  his  voice, 
harden  not  your  hearts." 

But,  instead  of  obeying  the  command  of  Grod,  will 
you  yield  rather  to  your  own  sinful  inclination,  and 
say,  "  I  hope  my  time  will  come  yet  ?"  If  so,  remem- 
ber the  case  of  my  aged  friend,  which  I  have  here 


60  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

An  exhortation.  Sails  without  breezes. 

spread  before  you.  This  delusive  hope  may  decoy  you 
onward  from  youth  to  middle  life,  thence  to  old  age. 
And  when  the  curtains  of  this  life  are  dropping  around 
you,  and  when  your  frail  tabernacle  is  just  returning 
to  the  dust,  even  then  you  may  be  left  to  the  ineffable 
folly  of  saying,  "  I  hope  my  time  will  come  yet."  And 
without  seeing  the  time  for  which  you  hoped,  and 
without  the  needful  preparation  to  meet  God  in  judg- 
ment, you  may  be  ushered  into  a  rayless,  hopeless 
eternity,  to  be  a  homeless  wanderer  from  the  light  of 
the  universe  forever. 

Put  not  off  present  duty  to  an  uncertain  future. 
Act  in  the  present  and  for  the  future.  Fix  not  even 
a  time  in  the  future  for  repentance.  This  is  boasting 
of  to-morrow.  You  may  never  reach  it ;  or  if  you  do, 
there  may  be  no  desires  after  God.  Or  you  may  have 
desires — you  may  lift  up  your  sails  to  catch  the  wind 
of  heaven,  but  there  may  be  no  celestial  breezes  to  fill 
them,  and  you  may  have  to  lie  down  in  everlasting 
sorrow.  As  you  value,  then,  the  life  of  your  soul,  say 
not,  oh  say  not,  "  I  hope  my  time  will  come  yet." 


THE     DYING     REGRET     OP     HARRIET.  61 

A  feeble  hope.  Duty.  Objections. 


THE  DYING  REGRET  OF  HARRIET. 

HARRIET  B was  a  teacher  in  my  Sunday-school, 

and  although  not  a  professor  of  religion,  she  was  far 
more  punctual  and  faithful  to  her  duties  than  many 
that  were.  She  was  a  member  of  my  Bible-class,  and 
was  among  its  most  intelligent  and  interested  mem- 
bers. Soon  after  I  became  her  pastor,  attracted  by 
her  serious  deportment  and  intelligence,  I  sought  an 
interview  with  her  for  religious  conversation.  Although 
remarkably  diffident,  she  expressed  a  feeble  but  intel- 
ligent hope  in  Christ.  She  thoroughly  understood  her 
demerits  as  a  sinner ;  she  had  the  clearest  views  of 
the  way  of  salvation  through  the  atonement  and  right- 
eousness of  Christ ;  she  fully  comprehended  the  great 
truth,  that  faith  is  the  saving  grace ;  and  she  hoped 
she  did  believe  in  Christ. 

Having  ascertained  this  to  be  her  state  of  mind,  I 
placed  before  her  her  duty  to  connect  herself  with  the 
Church  of  G-od.  She  expressed  her  great  unworthi- 
ness  of  such  a  privilege,  and  her  great  unfitness  for 
communion  with  the  saints.  She  spoke  much  of  her 
remaining  corruption,  of  her  varying  feelings,  of  her 
besetting  sins ;  and  she  expressed  it  as  her  conviction 
that  none  should  attach  themselves  to  the  Church  un- 
til they  were  assured  of  their  good  estate.  I  strove  to 
instruct  her  upon  the  difference  between  faith  and 


62  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

Expectation  excited.  Disappointments.  Last  interview. 

assurance.  She  soon  comprehended  me,  and  feeling 
that  I  had  gained  my  point,  and  that  at  the  next  com- 
munion, which  was  then  near,  she  would  profess  faith 
in  Christ,  the  interview  closed. 

The  communion  season  came  and  passed  away,  and 
Harriet,  as  usual,  was  only  a  solemn  spectator  of  the 
solemn  scene.  Repeatedly  had  I  interviews  with  her 
similar  to  that  now  narrated,  and  at  the  close  of  each 
I  indulged  the  hope  that  at  the  next  communion  sea- 
son she  would  connect  herself  with  the  Church.  But 
these  hopes,  often  indulged,  were  as  often  disappointed. 
Her  fidelity  to  her  Sabbath-school  class — her  regular- 
ity in  attendance  upon  all  the  means  of  grace  —  her 
readiness  to  do  for  the  cause  of  Christ,  never  intermit- 
ted ;  but  communion  seasons  and  years  passed  away 
without  her  confessing  Christ  before  men. 

Late  on  a  summer  evening,  I  was  called  from  a  so- 
cial circle  of  Christian  friends  to  see  Harriet  before  she 
died.  She  was  seized  with  a  fever,  which,  before  it 
was  feared,  had  almost  extinguished  life ;  and  before 
she  passed  away  from  earth  she  desired  one  more  in- 
terview with  me.  Her  dying  chamber  presented  a 
scene  never  to  be  forgotten.  The  family,  save  her 
mother,  who  had  previously  passed  into  the  skies,  were 
around  her  bed,  and,  with  a  mind  clear  and  collected, 
she  was  rapturously  speaking  to  them  about  Jesus,  and 
the  glory,  honor,  immortality,  and  eternal  life  which 
he  had  purchased  for  all  that  believe  in  him;  and 
with  a  propriety  and  earnestness  that  I  have  never 
known  surpassed,  she  exhorted  them  all  to  believe  and 
to  obey  Christ.  Never  did  I  witness  such  a  change. 


THE     DYINGREGRET     OF     HARRIET.  63 

Great  change.  Last  regret.  Dying  charge. 

The  diffident,  retiring  female  was  now  all  confidence ; 
the  tongue  that  was  almost  dumb  now  sweetly  and 
delightfully  sung ;  the  trembling  hope  was  exchanged 
for  assurance  and  joy,  and  the  hand  which  she  dared 
not  put  forth  to  partake  of  the  elements  of  the  broken 
and  shed  blood  of  Christ,  was  now  extended  to  grasp 
the  crown  of  glory. 

When  the  excitement  of  addressing  her  impenitent 
friends  had  passed,  and  she  had  recovered  a  little  from 
the  exhaustion,  I  took  my  seat  by  her  side,  and  held 
with  her  my  final  interview  until  we  meet  in  glory. 
Her  confidence  in  Christ  was  strong  and  cheerful. 
The  clouds  which,  like  dark  curtains,  had  so  long  hung 
around  her  mind,  had  all  passed  away,  and  the  light 
of  the  Savior's  countenance  shone  upon  her  with  the 
brightness  of  the  sun  in  its  strength ;  and  after  re- 
questing me  to  preach  a  sermon  to  the  young,  after 
her  burial,  on  the  text,  "Prepare  to  meet  thy  Grod," 
she  uttered,  with  the  deepest  emotion,  the  following 
memorable  sentiment :  "  Would,  would,  oh  would  that 
I  had  taken  your  advice,  and  that  I  had  confessed 
Christ  upon  earth !  I  hope  to  enjoy  him  forever  in 
glory ;  but  from  the  joy  and  from  the  bliss  of  having 
confessed  Christ  before  men,  I  am  now,  and  shall  be 
forever,  excluded.  Warn  all  not  to  do  as  I  have  done." 
I  prayed  with  her  and  bade  her  farewell.  Soon  after- 
ward the  silver  cord  was  loosed,  the  golden  bowl  was 
broken,  and  her  spirit  rose  up  to  the  God  that  gave  it. 

This  narrative  has  deeply  impressed  upon  my  mind 
a  few  truths,  which  I  desire  to  place  upon  record  for 
the  prayerful  and  serious  consideration  of  every  reader. 


64  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Faith  and  assurance.  Prerequisites. 

1.  Many,  very  many  are  prevented  from  professing 
Christ  before  men  because  they  discriminate  not  be- 
tween faith  and  assurance.     Here  was  the  practical 
error  of  Harriet,  and  which  for  years  kept  her  from  the 
communion  of  the  saints.     Faith  is  believing  what 
God  has  said  to  be  true,  and  treating  it  as  true ;  as- 
surance is  the  persuasion  that  I  do  believe — that  I  am 
a  Christian.     These  are  very  distinct.     Faith  is  trust- 
ing in  Christ  for  mercy  ;  assurance  enables  us  to  say, 
I  know  I  believe.     The  great  prerequisite  for  profess- 
ing Christ  before  men  is  a  cordial  belief  in  Christ,  and 
not  the  assurance  that  we  are  Christians.     Reader,  are 
you  in  the  state  of  mind  of  her  whose  brief  narrative 
I  have  here  placed  before  you?     Do  you  believe  in 
Christ  ?     Then  wait  not  for  assurance  to  profess  Christ 
before  men.    With  the  delightful  persuasion  that  Christ 
is  mighty  to  save,  willing  to  save,  waiting  to  save,  all 
that  believe,  go  and  devote  yourself  to  his  service,  and 
follow  him  in  the  way,  and  assurance  and  all  the  other 
graces  which  grow  along  the  path  of  obedience  will  be 
yours  in  due  time. 

2.  Many  are  prevented  from  professing  Christ  be- 
cause of  wrong  views  of  the  prerequisites  to  such  a 
profession.     It  is  the  superficial  and  unconverted  that 
usually  press  then*  way  into  the  Church ;  the  serious 
and  sober,  to  whom  Grod  has  revealed  what  is  in  their 
hearts,  usually,  like  Harriet,  are  found  waiting  at  the 
gates,  and  watching  at  the  posts  of  the  doors,  anxious 
to  enter  in,  but  yet  afraid,  lest  all  may  not  be  right. 
She  felt  her  unworthiness  of  such  a  privilege  ;  but  who 
are  worthy  ?     She  felt  unfit  for  the  communion  of  the 


THE     DYING     REGRET     OF     HARRIET.  65 

Who  fit  1  True  greatness.  Promptness  in  duty. 

saints ;  but  who  are  fit  ?  And  are  not  the  best  and 
holiest  members  of  the  Church,  like  ourselves,  imper- 
fect ?  She  spoke  of  her  remaining  corruption,  but  so 
did  Paul ;  and  of  her  varying  feelings,  but  so  did  David ; 
and  of  her  besetting  sins,  but  these  had  aU  the  saints. 
It  is  far  better  to  feel  unfit  than  fit  —  unworthy  than 
worthy.  Christ  came,  not  to  call  the  righteous,  but 
sinners  to  repentance.  It  is  they  who  are  sick  that 
have  need  of  the  physician.  It  is  the  weary  and  heavy- 
laden  that  Christ  invites  to  himself  for  rest.  Reader, 
is  the  question  before  your  mind,  Shall  I  or  shall  I  not 
profess  Christ  before  men  ?  As  you  would  do  duty  in- 
telligently, and  follow  Christ  truly,  I  implore  you  to 
permit  nothing  to  enter  into  its  settlement  but  that 
which  truly  belongs  to  it.  Do  you  feel  that  you  are  a 
sinner  ?  Do  you  feel  that  Christ  alone  can  save  you  ? 
Do  you  feel  that  you  can  rest  alone  upon  him  for  sal- 
vation, as  he  is  offered  to  you  in  the  Gospel  ? 

"  Let  not  conscience  make  you  linger, 
Nor  of  fitness  fondly  dream." 

Go  and  join  yourself  to  the  people  of  God,  and  follow 
Christ  in  all  the  paths  of  duty,  and  your  light  will  be- 
come brighter  and  brighter  even  unto  the  perfect  day. 
To  profess  Christ  before  men,  the  great  prerequisite  is 
a  true  and  lively  faith  in  him.  Let  all  of  whom  be- 
lieving and  doubting  Harriet  is  the  representative, 
ponder  this  truth,  until  they  see  it  in  the  broad  light 
in  which  it  is  written  on  the  pages  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment. 

3.  Let  none  think  that  they  can  serve  Christ  as 
fully,  and  possess  the  joys  of  salvation  as  abundant- 


66  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

A  false  principle.  Obedience.  Follow  the  Lord  fully. 

ly,  without  professing  him  before  men,  as  by  so  doing. 
This  position,  though  often  asserted,  is  utterly  false. 
It  involves  a  general  principle  which  lays  the  axe  at 
the  root  of  the  Church  as  a  divine  institution.  If  one 
may  serve  Christ  fully  away  from  the  Church,  so  may 
all ;  and  if  all  adopt  this  principle,  what  becomes  of 
the  Church  ?  It  passes  away  from  the  earth  in  two 
generations. 

Besides,  obedience  is  better  than  sacrifice,  and  the 
test  of  true  obedience  is  to  follow  the  Lord  fully.  Can 
we  so  follow  him  away  from  his  Church  and  people, 
when  we  have  the  opportunity  to  join  them  ?  Is  there 
a  solitary  case  to  be  found  among  all  the  records  of 
men  in  proof  of  this  ?  Who,  on  their  dying  bed,  have 
ever  rejoiced  that  they  served  Christ  disconnected  with 
his  Church  ?  I  have  known  many  who  attempted  to 
do  this,  and  in  every  case  I  could  trace  it  to  a  latent 
desire  to  serve  God  and  mammon.  And  the  Savior 
tells  us  this  is  impossible. 

The  dying  Harriet  felt,  when  trembling  on  the  con- 
fines of  eternity,  that  her  failing  to  confess  Christ  be- 
fore men  would  subtract  from  her  joy  forever.  And 
she  felt  truly.  One  of  the  most  precious  promises  of 
the  Savior  is  made  to  those  who  confess  him  before 
men.  And  I  feel  that  I  should  be  disobedient  to  her 
dying  injunction,  unless  I  lift  my  voice,  warning  all 
men  every  where  against  those  errors  which,  dying, 
she  deplored.  There  are  consolations  in  Christ  which 
none  can  truly  know,  here  or  hereafter,  but  those  that 
follow  the  Lord  fully. 

4.  Harriet  died  in  her  youth,  and  while  putting  off 


THK     DYING    REGRET    OF    HARRIET.          67 

Postponement.  A  lower  song.  Do  duty. 

a  present  duty  to  a  future  day.  That  future  day  she 
never  saw,  and  the  duty  was  never  performed.  And 
before  she  entered  the  chariot  which  conveyed  her  to 
glory,  she  felt,  and  she  said,  that  her  song  of  praise  to 
the  Redeemer  must  be  lower  than  the  song  of  those 
who  confessed  Christ  amid  many  tribulations,  who 
washed  their  robes  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood 
of  the  Lamb.  Reader,  do  duty  to-day.  Your  highest 
duty  is  to  follow  Christ  — so  follow  him  as  you  will 
wish  you  had  done  when  you  come  to  die.  These 
truths  are  addressed  to  you  from  the  death-bed  of 
Harriet. 


68  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Pastoral  visitation.  The  farm-house. 


"BUT  I  WAS  NOT  ONE  OF  THEM." 

I  AM  one  of  those  pastors  who  continue  the  good  old 
apostolical  practice  of  visiting  "  from  house  to  house" 
among  my  people ;  and  although  a  most  laborious,  it 
is  an  exceedingly  important  and  efficient  way  of  doing 
good.  It  gives  access  to  minds  and  hearts  that  can 
never  be  reached  from  the  pulpit ;  it  tends  to  bind  pas- 
tor and  people  together,  and  it  is  richly  suggestive  of 
topics  for  public  instruction. 

On  a  damp  and  chilly  day  in  the  month  of  Novem- 
ber, I  went  forth  on  a  pastoral  visitation  among  my 
people.  It  was  my  first  regular  visitation  after  my 
settlement  among  them.  As  the  day  was  drawing  to- 
ward its  close,  I  entered  a  farm-house  wearing  exter- 
nally and  internally  an  air  of  comfort.  Every  thing 
was  in  pleasant  preparation  for  my  reception.  On 
either  side  of  a  glowing  fire  sat  the  father  and  mother 
of  the  household,  now  well  advanced  in  years;  and 
ranged  between  them  were  the  other  members  of  the 
family,  the  youngest  child,  then  a  lad  of  about  fifteen 
years,  holding  his  catechism  in  his  hand.  He  could  re- 
peat it  from  beginning  to  end,  showing  that,  as  to  the 
theory  of  religion,  his  education  was  not  neglected.  I 
went  round  the  family  group  conversing  with  each  as 
to  their  personal  interest  in  the  work  of  Christ  for  the 
salvation  of  men.  Every  thing  was  free,  social,  and 


BUT     I     WAS     NOT     ONE     OP     THEM.  69 

None  pious.  The  father.  His  address. 

pleasant ;  but  while  with,  an  intelligent  understanding 
of  the  plan  of  salvation,  and  while  freely  admitting  that 
there  was  no  way  for  them  to  heaven  but  through  faith 
in  Jesus  Christ,  I  found,  to  my  great  grief,  that  parents 
and  children  were  aliens  from  the  commonwealth  of 
Israel.  After  giving  to  each  a  word  of  instruction 
adapted  to  their  circumstances,  and  to  the  views  ex- 
pressed by  them  in  conversation,  we  bowed  together 
before  the  high  and  lofty  One;  and  having  implored 
for  them  all  temporal  and  spiritual  good,  I  bade  them 
farewell. 

The  father,  whose  natural  strength  many  years  had 
not  impaired,  and  whose  kind  and  gentle  manners  made 
him  a  favorite  among  his  neighbors,  followed  me  to  the 
door,  and,  closing  it  after  him,  stopped  me  on  the  porch. 
His  countenance  gave  strong  indications  that  there  was 
something  pressing  upon  his  soul  which  he  wished  to 
communicate.  Hoping  that  the  Holy  Spirit  had  bless- 
ed my  visit  to  his  conviction,  I  waited  with  anxiety  to 
hear  what  he  had  to  say.  After  a  considerable  pause, 
taking  me  by  the  hand,  he  thus  addressed  me : 

"  I  thank  you  for  this  visit ;  although  the  first  you 
have  made  us,  I  hope  it  will  not  be  the  last.  I  thank 
you  for  all  the  advice  you  have  given  us  ;  and  as  you 
have  but  just  commenced  your  labors  among  us  as  a 
minister,  I  wish  to  give  you  a  word  of  advice,  based  on 
my  own  experience.  Let  us  old  people  alone,  for  we 
are  hopeless  subjects,  and  devote  your  labors  to  the 

youth  of  your  flock.  Forty  years  ago,  when  Mr.  A 

was  our  pastor,  I  was  greatly  anxious  about  my  soul. 
Many  were  then  converted,  but  I  was  not  one  of  them. 


70  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

His  narrative.  Let  the  old  alone.  His  progress. 

During  the  ministry  of  Mr.  M I  was  often  greatly 

anxious  about  my  soul — I  went  to  the  conference- 
meeting — many  were  converted  in  the  successive  re- 
vivals enjoyed,  but  I  was  not  one  of  them.  And  now, 
for  years  that  are  passed,  I  have  not  had  a  single  feel- 
ing on  the  subject.  I  know  that  I  am  a  lost  sinner — 
I  know  that  I  can  be  saved  only  through  Jesus  Christ 
— I  feel  persuaded  that  when  I  die  I  shall  go  to  hell, 
forever  —  I  believe  all  you  preach— I  believe  all  you 
have  said  to  me  and  my  family,  but  I  feel  it  no  more 
than  if  I  were  a  block  of  marble ;  and  I  expect  to  live 
and  to  die  just  as  I  am ;  so  that  my  advice  to  you  is 
to  leave  us  old  people  to  ourselves  and  our  sins,  for  you 
can  not  do  us  much  good,  and  devote  yourself  to  the 
work  of  seeking  the  conversion  of  the  young." 

And  all  this,  and  more,  was  said  with  a  kind  and 
pleasant  bearing,  which  forbade  every  thing  like  sus- 
picion of  his  motives ;  and  yet  with  a  cool  deliberate- 
ness  which  made  me  feel  that  the  man  was  a  mystery. 
After  placing  before  him  the  fullness  of  the  redemption 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus,  we  parted. 

I  remembered  the  incident,  and  watched  the  progress 
of  this  man.  His  seat  was  rarely  vacant  in  the  sanc- 
tuary. To  hear  the  word  preached,  he  breasted  many 
a  storm  which  kept  the  professor  of  religion  at  home. 
I  made  him  other  visits ;  and  while  he  admitted  all  I 
said,  and  freely  confessed  his  lost  state,  I  never  wit- 
nessed in  him  the  slightest  ruffle  of  religious  emotion. 
He  was  a  true  prophet  of  his  own  fate.  He  lived  as 
he  predicted,  and  so  he  died.  And  we  laid  him  down 
in  a  hopeless  grave,  after  having  spent  his  threescore 


BUT     I     WAS     NOT     ONE     OF     THEM.  71 


Power  of  custom. 


years  and  ten  without  repentance  toward  G-od,  or  faith 
in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  the  midst  of  a  congrega- 
tion over  which  Grod  has  often  made  windows  in 
heaven. 

The  lessons  taught  by  this  incident  are  very  obvious, 
highly  important,  and  deeply  impressive.  To  a  few  of 
these,  the  prayerful  attention  of  the  reader  is. earnestly 
requested. 

Are  you  advanced  in  life?  Are  you  approaching 
the  verge  of  old  age  ?  Then  ponder,  unless  you  are  a 
Christian,  the  many  probabilities  that  you  will  never 
be  converted.  "Can  a  man  be  born  again  when  he 
is  old?"  Being  long  habituated  to  certain  ways  of 
thinking  and  doing,  the  aged  find  it  difficult  to  change. 
Old  ways  and  things  become,  to  a  certain  extent,  sacred. 
Hence  their  attachment  to  old  modes  of  dress  and  of 
living — to  old  habitations  and  associations.  The  old 
heathen  die  as  they  live.  The  aged  papist  dies  as  he 
lives.  The  most  gross  absurdities  of  his  system  of 
worship  become  interwoven  with  his  feelings  on  the 
subject  of  religion,  and  form  the  most  sacred  part  of  it ; 
and  the  aged  moralist,  infidel,  atheist,  die  as  they  live. 
Custom  renders  every  thing  easy ;  and  the  man  who, 
through  a  long  life,  has  been  accustomed  to  hear  and 
to  assent  to  the  truth  of  heaven  with  indifference,  will, 
to  a  moral  certainty,  die  as  he  lives.  His  habits  are 
to  him  what  his  skin  is  to  the  Ethiopian— what  his 
spots  are  to  the  leopard. 

And  the  ground  of  the  moral  certainty  that  you  will 
not  be  converted  lies  not  in  (rod,  but  hi  yourself.  Grod 
is  ever  waiting  and  willing  to  be  gracious ;  but  you 


72  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  aged  warned.  The  convicted.  The  hard  heart. 

have  teen  so  long  accustomed  to  neglect  every  call  to 
work  out  your  salvation,  that  there  is  no  probability 
that  you  will  now  attend  to  it.  But,  although  your 
feet  are  on  the  borders  of  time,  you  have  only  to  look 
to  Jesus  in  true  faith  to  be  prepared  for  eternity.  At 
the  eleventh  hour  of  your  life,  the  Grospel  puts  the  cup 
of  salvation  into  your  trembling  hand.  Oh  hasten  to 
drink  it,  remembering  that  this  hour  is  on  the  wing, 
and  that,  when  it  ends,  you  will  be  in  the  grave,  where 
there  is  no  work,  nor  device,  nor  knowledge,  nor  re- 
pentance. 

Are  you  one  of  that  large  number  who  have  been 
often  convicted  of  sin  without  being  converted  ?  who 
have  been  often  deeply  impressed  with  divine  truth 
without  receiving  "  with  meekness  the  ingrafted  word 
which  is  able  to  save  your  soul  ?"  If  so,  then  yours  is 
an  alarming  state.  You  are  passing  through  that  pro- 
cess which  has  converted  many  a  tender  heart  into  a 
heart  of  steel.  Of  this  process  there  are  many  illustra- 
tions. The  young  physician  is  excited,  perhaps  dis- 
gusted, the  first  time  he  witnesses  a  dissection ;  but  he 
will  soon  use  the  knife  upon  the  living  or  dead  subject 
without  the  least  emotion.  The  young  soldier,  when 
he  first  treads  the  battle-field,  is  filled  with  fear  and 
trepidation ;  but  in  the  course  of  time  the  clangor  of 
the  war-trumpet  is  to  him  the  sweetest  music,  and 
the  field  of  his  highest  glory  is  the  field  of  blood  and 
carnage ;  and  in  a  similar  way,  the  heart  that  melts 
under  the  preaching  of  the  Grospel,  and  that  trembles 
at  the  word  of  the  Lord,  becomes  as  hard  as  the  flint, 
and  as  unimpressible.  This  state  is  gained  by  slow 


BUT     I     WAS     NOT     ONE     OF     THEM.  ?o 

Satan's  wisdom.  Sealing  the  death- warran- 

stages.  Satan  does  not  permit  the  heart  to  offend  the 
judgment  by  asking  too  much  at  once.  He  asks  hut 
here  a  little  and  there  a  little.  And,  by  degrees,  the 
judgment  is  perverted,  and  the  conscience  is  seared, 
and  fear  is  overcome,  and  the  warnings  of  God's  word 
and  providence  lose  their  point  and  power,  and  the 
most  awful  truths  of  heaven,  whose  reality  the  mind 
never  questions,  fall  as  lightly  upon  the  soul  as  does 
the  snow-drop  upon  the  rock.  Thus  we  pass  on  from 
youth,  when  the  feelings,  like  the  bosom  of  the  ocean, 
are  ruffled  by  the  slightest  zephyr,  to  old  age,  when  the 
feelings  are  like  the  Dead  Sea,  whose  surface  can 
scarcely  be  excited  by  the  sweeping  whirlwind,  and 
which,  if  excited,  soon  relapses  into  its  sullen  stillness. 
And  the  longer  the  process  is  continued,  the  harder  the 
heart  becomes.  If  religious  impressions,  often  made 
on  your  mind,  have  been  as  often  erased,  yours  is  a 
fearful  state.  If  the  slightest  whisper  of  the  Spirit  yet 
calls  you  to  the  cross,  go  at  once,  lest,  when  that  whis- 
per dies  away  upon  your  ear,  the  Spirit  may  take  its 
flight,  saying,  "  He  is  joined  to  his  idols ;  I  will  here- 
after let  him  alone."  This  will  be  sealing  the  instru- 
ment which  consigns  you  to  eternal  death. 

Are  you  yet  in  your  youth,  with  the  dew  of  the 
morning  of  your  life  sparkling  on  your  green  leaf? 
Then  has  this  incident  a  most  important  lesson  for  you. 
If  difficulties,  many  and  great,  "impede  the  conversion 
of  the  aged,  how  important  to  secure  your  salvation 
while  young !  Many  promises  are  now  in  your  favor, 
but  they  are  daily  diminishing.  Your  heart,  now  easily 
impressed,  is  becoming  harder  and  harder.  You  are 

D 


74  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Seasons  of  youth  and  old  age  compared. 

now  comparatively  but  little  occupied  with  the  world, 
but  it  is  throwing  daily  a  new  fold  around  you.  You 
should  not  be  ignorant  of  the  important  truth  that  the 
probabilities  of  your  salvation  are  becoming  fewer  and 
weaker  as  your  years  roll  on.  It  is  an  easy  matter  to 
break  up  the  earth  in  April  and  May,  and  to  plant  in 
its  bosom  the  good  seed  that  bears  fruit  in  autumn ; 
but  what  power  can  cultivate  it  when  congealed  by  the 
cold,  and  covered  by  the  snows  of  December  ?  Seize, 
oh  seize,  then,  the  halcyon  days  of  youth  to  prepare  for 
old  age,  death,  and  eternity.  Wait  not  until  covered 
by  the  rust,  and  weakened  by  the  infirmities  of  years. 
To-day,  if  you  will  hear  His  voice,  harden  not  your 
heart.  Opportunity,  grace,  mercy,  heaven,  eternal 
glory,  are  all  upon  the  wing  of  the  present  hour ;  con- 
demnation, hell,  eternal  despair,  the  worm  that  never 
dies,  may  all  be  in  the  train  of  the  next.  So  improve 
your  youth  as  not  to  be  left  to  say  in  old  age,  "  Many 
were  converted,  BUT  I  WAS  NOT  ONE  OF  THEM." 


LAURAANN.  75 


The  day.  The  family.  Laura  Ann. 


LAURA  AO. 

IT  was  the  afternoon  of  the  week  for  my  family 
visits.  A  cold  November  storm  was  brewing,  and 
amid  the  unpleasant  and  chilling  drizzle  by  which  it 
is  often  preceded,  myself  and  elder  went  forth  to  our 
duty.  Regarding  the  church  as  the  centre  of  the 
parish,  my  custom  is  to  commence  my  visits  with  the 
most  distant  families,  and  to  visit  toward  the  centre. 
As  we  passed  along,  I  observed  a  parishioner  cutting 
wood  in  his  yard,  and  sought  in  vain  a  nod  of  recog- 
nition. Little  did  I  suspect  the  tram  of  thought  which 
was  passing  through  his  mind.  We  soon  reached  this 
family  in  the  regular  order  of  visitation,  and  found 
every  thing  ready  for  our  reception.  The  parents  were 
not  pious  ;  and  Laura  Ann  was  about  four  years  old, 
sitting  at  her  mother's  knee.  They  admitted  the  im- 
portance of  religion ;  they  confessed  belief  in  all  its 
doctrines  ;  they  had  no  excuse  to  offer  for  remaining 
in  a  state  of  impenitence.  The  duty  of  immediate  re- 
pentance and  of  faith  in  Christ  was  urged,  and  having 
obtained  a  promise  of  immediate  attention  to  personal 
and  family  duty,  we  prayed  with  them  and  retired ; 
and  of  this  interview  Laura  Ann  was  a  youthful  but 
apparently  absorbed  witness. 

On  the  next  week  we  met  these  parents  at  a  prayer- 
meeting  at  some  distance  from  their  residence.  There 


76  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  change.  Its  effects.  Her  youth. 

was  an  obvious  change  in  their  appearance  and  de- 
meanor. The  countenance  of  the  one  was  cheerful 
and  hopeful — of  the  other,  confiding,  but  shaded  :  both 
were  hoping  in  Christ.  On  the  day  of  that  family 
visit  they  had  committed  themselves  to  God,  and 
erected  the  family  altar,  and  had  resolved  to  serve  the 
Lord  as  long  as  they  lived.  When  chopping  wood,  he 
saw  mo  pass  his  house  :  he  had  arranged  in  his  mind 
what  to  say  to  me  when  I  returned  to  make  my  visit 
—  he  would  give  this  excuse,  and  then  that ;  but  by 
the  time  I  reached  his  house,  every  excuse  was  given 
up  one  after  the  other,  and  when  the  interview  took 
place,  he  frankly  confessed  that  he  was  a  sinner,  and 
without  any  excuse  for  his  impenitence.  They  found 
Christ  at  the  same  time,  connected  themselves  with 
the  Church  at  the  same  time,  and  they  yet  live,  prov- 
ing by  a  simple,  humble  life  of  obedience  that  the 
Lord  created  a  right  spirit  within  them. 

The  delicate,  sedate,  and  thoughtful  appearance  of 
Laura  Ann,  as  she  grew  up  from  childhood  to  youth, 
greatly  interested  me.  When  examining  her  in  the  Cat- 
echism, and  explaining  to  her  the  way  of  life  through 
Jesus  Christ,  I  have  seen  her  whole  mind  absorbed, 
and  her  eyes  often  suffused  with  tears.  Before  she 
was  twelve  years  of  age,  the  disease  which  had  marked 
her  for  an  early  grave  made  its  appearance.  She  was 
withdrawn  from  school,  and  was  soon  confined  to  the 
house  and  to  her  room.  On  my  first  visit  to  her  bed 
of  sickness,  I  was  greatly  interested  in  her  state  of 
mind.  She  felt  that  she  must  die,  and  her  great  anx- 
iety was  to  have  a  true  preparation  for  her  change.  I 


LAURAANN.  77 


Her  sickness.  First  visit.  Her  disposition. 

briefly  explained  to  her  the  plan  of  salvation  through 
Christ.  She  felt  she  was  a  sinner — she  knew  and  ap- 
preciated the  great  truth  that  Christ  Jesus  died  for 
sinners,  and  would  save  to  the  uttermost  all  that  would 
believe  in  him ;  and  she  felt  that  she  could  believe  on 
him  to  the  saving  of  her  soul.  And  yet  she  felt  that 
she  was  not  a  Christian.  But  when  I  simplified  the 
way  of  life,  and  placed  before  her  what  it  was  that 
constituted  the  Christian,  and  gave  a  true  ground  for 
hope  in  Christ,  a  cloud  seemed  to  pass  away  from  her 
sky,  and  she  said,  "  If  this  is  so,  I  think  I  can  say, 
'  Lord,  I  believe,  help  thou  my  unbelief.' "  I  believe 
she  had  been  previously  converted ;  and  before  my 
first  visit  to  her  bed  of  sickness  was  ended,  she  had  a 
comforting  evidence  that  she  was  a  child  of  God. 

Her  disposition  was  the  most  confiding,  simple,  and 
child-like.  Her  disease  slowly  progressed  to  its  term- 
ination, as  if  for  the  purpose  of  permitting  her  graces 
to  grow  and  to  bear  fruit ;  and  from  the  first  hour 
of  her  expressing  a  hope  in  Christ  until  the  silver 
cord  was  loosed  and  the  golden  bowl  was  broken,  her 
confidence  was  as  firm  as  the  truth  upon  which  it 
was  based,  and  her  hopes  as  bright  as  the  promises 
which  inspired  them. 

Sitting  by  her  bedside,  she  said  to  me,  "  "While  I 
know  that  there  is  nothing  saving  in  Church  connec- 
tion, and  that  I  shall  never  be  able  to  go  out  from  this 
room  to  commune  with  the  people  of  the  Lord  at  the 
Lord's  table,  yet  I  would  be  greatly  gratified  to  con- 
fess Christ  before  men,  and  to  identify  myself  with 
his  visible  people."  I  told  her  that  her  desires  could 


78  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Reception.  Thankfulness.  Tenderness  for  parents. 

be  gratified  in  these  respects ;  and  a  smile  of  joy  im- 
mediately lit  up  her  pale  countenance.  A  committee 
from  the  Session  went  to  her  sick-room,  one  of  whom 
was  an  aged  and  venerated  man,  deeply  read  in  a 
Christian  experience.  They  united  in  stating  to  their 
brethren  that  a  more  interesting  or  satisfactory  evi- 
dence of  love  to  Grod  they  had  never  heard  from  young 
or  old.  And  she  was  received  to  the  communion  of 
the  saints,  although  unable  ever  to  meet  with  them  in 
the  breaking  of  bread ;  and  the  fact  of  her  connection 
with  them  was  an  unfailing  source  of  comfort  to  her. 

Her  uncomplaining  submission  to  the  will  of  God 
was  remarkable.  Instead  of  fretting  under  the  hand 
of  the  Lord,  or  complaining  that  she  was  sick  when 
others  of  her  companions  were  well,  she  was  often 
heard  to  rejoice  that  she  was  so  early  attacked  with 
consumption.  "  It  is  a  protracted  disease,"  she  would 
say,  "  and  gives  me  time  for  preparation  and  examin- 
ation ;  and  it  has  come  early  in  life,  before  strong  at- 
tachments and  ties  to  earth  were  formed."  Often 
have  I  heard  her  say,  "  I  can  not  be  too  thanklul  that 
I  am  dying  of  consumption." 

Her  solicitude  as  to  her  parents  was  of  the  most 
deep  and  delicate  character.  Often  afflicted  with  hem- 
orrhage, she  concealed  the  blood  in  cloths  about  her 
bed,  and  had  them  removed  without  their  notice. 
When  asked  why  she  did  so  by  her  mother,  her  reply 
was,  "  I  could  not  bear  to  see  you  suffer  the  pain  which 
these  repeated  evidences  of  my  incurable  disease  gave 
you."  A  portrait  of  her,  by  an  artist  in  the  town,  was 
suggested,  to  which  she  readily  consented,  and  solely 


LAURAANN.  79 


Reconciling  them.  Hope  preferred  to  health. 

on  the  ground  that  "  it  may  be  a  comfort  to  my  parents 
when  my  body  is  in  the  grave — when  I  will  be  present 
no  more  to  comfort  them."  And  when  these  parents 
would  sit  sorrowing  by  her  side,  she  would  enter  with 
them  into  the  most  sweet  and  earnest  conversation,  to 
reconcile  them  to  her  sickness  and  early  death,  and  to 
prove  to  them  that  for  her  "to  depart  and  to  be  with 
Christ  was  far  better"  than  to  remain  on  earth,  and  to 
jeopardize  her  salvation  amid  its  cares  and  besetting 
sins.  And  she  succeeded  in  her  efforts ;  for  never  did 
parents  more  tenderly  love  a  child,  or  more  cheerfully 
surrender  one  when  God  called  her  away. 

Her  cheerful  piety,  scarcely  shaded  by  a  single  cloud 
of  doubt,  rendered  her  sick-room  very  attractive.  As 
her  pastor  I  was  often  there,  and  never  without  receiv- 
ing at  least  as  much  instruction  as  I  imparted.  "  You 
often  feel,  I  suppose,  Laura,"  said  I  to  her,  "  a  desire 
to  recover,  and  to  serve  God  by  a  life  of  active  obe- 
dience." She  promptly  replied,  "Upon  that  subject  I 
have  no  desire  or  will.  I  refer  all  to  God.  I  am  afraid, 
if  I  should  get  well,  I  might  lose  my  hope  and  confi- 
dence in  Christ ;"  and  after  a  brief  pause,  caused  by 
weakness,  she  ended  the  sentence,  saying,  with  a  look 
and  tone  never  to  be  forgotten,  "  I  would  rather  have 
my  hope  than  my  health."  Christ  and  his  cross  was 
her  ceaseless  theme,  and  that  not  in  a  forced  way,  but 
in  a  manner  the  most  easy  and  free.  Her  words  and 
feelings  were  as  natural  as  the  waters  coming  up  from 
a  living  spring.  Shortly  after  her  reception  into  the 
Church,  she  was  visited  by  a  pious  female,  who  failed 
to  say  any  thing  to  her  on  religious  matters,  at  which 


80  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

.Surprise.  Age  instructed.  Recognition  in  heaven. 

she  expressed  great  surprise.  She  greatly  delighted  in 
the  visits  of  an  aged  elder,  whose  life  for  many  years 
had  been  hid  with  Christ  in  God,  and  who  never  re- 
tired from  her  room  without  feeling  that  he  was  the 
one  edified  and  benefited. 

Her  meditations  often  took  the  direction  of  recogni- 
tion in  the  spiritual  state.  She  sought  my  opinion 
upon  the  subject,  which  served  to  confirm  her  in  her 
own  previous  conclusions.  Thenceforward  she  was 
confirmed  in  the  belief  of  the  mutual  recognition  of 
the  blessed  in  heaven ;  and  the  belief  she  used  as  a 
source  of  consolation  to  herself  and  of  comfort  to  her 
friends.  To  an  aunt,  who,  in  retiring  from  her  room, 
asked  her  what  she  would  say  from  her  to  her  cousins, 
she  replied,  "  Tell  them  that  I  expect  soon  to  meet 
Sarah  Ann  in  heaven."  Sarah  Ann  was  a  cousin  who 
had  died  but  a  short  time  before  in  the  triumphs  of 
faith. 

With  great  intelligence  she  marked,  for  months,  the 
progress  of  her  disease.  When  her  feet  began  to  swell, 
she  remarked,  "  The  struggle,  thank  Grod,  will  now 
soon  be  over."  "  My  Church,  and  minister,  and  the 
people,"  she  said,  "  are  very  dear  to  me ;  I  wish  to  be 
buried  in  that  grave-yard,  where  my  parents  can  visit 
my  grave,  if  they  wish,  when  they  go  to  church  on 
the  Sabbath."  She  now  made  distribution  of  her  lit- 
tle effects  to  her  friends,  to  be  kept  as  memorials  of 
her  when  she  was  gone.  To  a  younger  brother,  who 
has  since  been  laid  by  her  side,  she  gave  a  Testament, 
in  which  she  ordered  the  following  lines  to  be  tran- 
scribed, written  with  her  own  hand  : 


LAURAANN.  81 


lirief  epistles. 


"  MY  DEAR  BROTHER, — You  are  young,  but  you  have 
a  soul  to  save.  Pray  every  day,  and  read  this  little 
book.  Pray  for  a  new  heart,  and  that  you  may  be 
prepared  to  meet  me  in  heaven.  Remember  your  dy- 
ing sister,  LAURA." 

For  a  young  sister 'she  laid  aside  a  Sabbath-school 
book,  and  wrote  the  following  lines,  to  be  written  in  it 
after  her  death : 

"  MY  DEAR  SISTER, — If  it  is  your  wish  to  meet  me 
in  heaven,  you  must  prepare.  "We  soon  shall  part : 
shall  we  ever  meet  again  ?  Prepare  to  meet  thy  God. 
Remember  the  dying  words  of  your  sister 

"  LAURA." 

To  a  cousin  she  wrote, 

"  I  feel  that  I  must  soon  take  my  departure.  Oh, 
what  a  sweet  thing  to  be  resigned  to  die !  I  feel  that 
I  can  put  my  entire  trust  in  Jesus  my  Redeemer. 

"  LAURA  ANN." 

Having  made  distribution  of  her  articles,  she  felt 
she  had  then  nothing  to  do  but  to  die,  and  then  "  to  go 
home  to  heaven."  Looking  out  from  her  window,  she 
said,  "  I  know  I  shall  never  walk  these  streets  more, 
but  I  shah1  soon  walk  the  streets  of  the  New  Jerusa- 
lem." On  being  asked  whether  she  was  willing  to 
leave  all  her  friends,  she  replied,  with  spirit  and  energy, 
"  0  yes ;  the  enjoyments  of  this  world  are  nothing  in 

D2 


82  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Her  last  hours.  Benefits  of  family  visitations. 

comparison  with  the  enjoyments  of  heaven."  Waking 
from  a  deep  slumber  on  the  last  Sabbath  morning  of 
her  life,  she  exclaimed,  "  How  lovely  every  thing  seems ! 
It  reminds  me  of  a  picture  I  once  saw  of  the  bright, 
bright  path  that  leads  to  heaven."  Remaining  for 
some  time  in  a  silent  and  thoughtful  position,  she  was 
asked  why  she  said  so  little  to  her  afflicted  friends 
around  her.  She  replied,  "  I  feel  that  I  have  been  visit- 
ed by  angels,  and  I  long  to  be  away  with  them."  When 
the  last  sands  in  the  glass  of  life  were  running,  a  rela- 
tive whispered  in  her  ear,  "  This  is  death ;  the  strug- 
gle will  soon  be  over."  She  replied,  with  a  smile 
lighting  up  all  her  countenance,  "  Grod  is  good  ;"  and 
in  a  few  moments  afterward  her  spirit  returned  unto 
G-od  who  gave  it.  Her  life  was  a  brief  one ;  it  had 
not  quite  reached  fifteen  years,  but  she  attained  the 
great  object  of  life,  and  its  end  was  glorious.  No  more 
lovely  life  or  death  have  I  ever  witnessed. 

How  manifold  and  important  the  lessons  of  this  nar- 
rative ! 

Does  it  not  illustrate  the  importance  of  ministers 
retaining  the  good  old  plan  of  family  visitation  in  the 
Churches?  In  the  pamly  days  of  the  Church,  the 
pastor,  with  his  elder,  regularly  visited  the  families  of 
his  charge.  He  conversed  personally  with  every  adult ; 
he  catechised  the  children  —  he  prayed  with  them. 
Thus,  while  not  failing  in  his  duties  in  the  pulpit,  he 
carried  the  Gospel  from  house  to  house.  Not  a  family 
was  overlooked — not  a  person,  young  or  old,  was  neg- 
lected. A  personal  appeal  was  made  to  every  indi- 
vidual, and  a  bond  of  union,  which  death  only  could 


LAURA     ANN.  83 


Important  duty.  Family  religion.  Catechising. 

sever,  united  pastor  and  people;  and  a  piety,  less 
showy  than  in  our  day,  but  far  more  solid  and  consist- 
ent, was  the  result.  To  that  family  visit,  under  God, 
we  trace  the  conversion  of  the  parents  of  Laura  Ann, 
and  subsequently  her  own  brief  but  bright  life  and 
happy  death.  Family  visitation  is  a  most  laborious, 
but  a  most  important  part  of  a  pastor's  duty ;  in  the 
neglect  of  it,  we  know  not  how  any  man  can  feed  the 
flock  of  God. 

Does  it  not  illustrate  the  importance  of  the  religious 
instruction  of  the  young?  Laura  Ann,  from  child- 
hood, knew  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  was  instructed 
in  the  Shorter  Catechism  ;  not  in  a  forced,  but  entirely 
simple  and  natural  way,  she  was  accustomed  to  relig- 
ious conversation.  These  things  made  deep  and  early 
impressions,  and,  through  the  agency  of  the  Spirit,  re- 
sulted in  her  early  conversion.  Oh,  how  important  the 
precept,  "  Train  up,"  or,  as  it  is  in  the  margin,  "  Cat- 
echise a  child  in  the  way  he  should  go."  The  lovely 
life  and  happy  death  of  Laura  Ann  were  intimately 
connected  with  her  domestic  religious  instruction. 
"When  family  religion  is  rightly  maintained  in  every 
Christian  family,  it  will  be  scarcely  second  to  the  min- 
istry in  its  influence  in  extending  the  dominion  of 
Christ  in  our  world. 

To  those  in  youthful  years,  does  it  not  illustrate  the 
importance  of  the  precept,  "  Remember  now  thy  Crea- 
tor in  the  days  of  thy  youth  ?"  "While  the  dew  of  her 
youth  was  sparkling  upon  her  green  leaf,  the  hand  of 
Death  was  laid  upon  Laura  Ann.  Her  sun  set  before 
it  reached  its  noon;  but  it  rose  in  another  sphere, 


84  P  A  R  I  S  II     P  E  N  C  I  L  I  N  G  S. 

Youthful  piety. 

never  again  to  set,  where  it  will  shine  with  unsullied 
brightness  forever  and  ever. 

"  Grace  is  a.  plant,  where'er  it  grows, 

Of  pure  and  heavenly  root, 
But  fairest  in  the  youngest  shows, 
And  yields  the  sweetest  fruit." 


THE     SCENE     IN    A    GRAVE-YARD.  85 

Mother's  impress.  Consumption.  All  avenues  closed. 


THE  SCENE  IN  A  GRAVE-YARD. 

I  WAS  asked  to  visit  a  young  man  who  was  very 
sick.  I  was  soon  at  his  bedside.  Although  hitherto 
careless  about  his  salvation,  I  learned  that  he  was  the 
son  of  a  praying  mother,  who  had  passed  into  the  skies, 
and  who  had  left  her  impress  upon  the  hearts  of  her 
children.  This  inspired  me  with  hope,  as  it  gave  me 
a  strong  hold  on  the  sympathies  and  conscience  of  the 
dying  youth  before  me. 

His  disease  was  consumption — the  most  deceptive 
of  diseases  —  which,  while  it  is  undermining  the  cit- 
adel of  life,  unfurls  the  flag  of  hope  from  its  summit. 
For  months  he  had  struggled  against  its  gradual  and 
stealthy  advances,  but  with  wasted  energies  he  now 
lay  gasping  for  breath  before  me.  I  spoke  to  him  of 
death,  but  he  hoped  soon  to  be  well  again.  I  told  him 
of  the  uncertainty  of  life,  even  as  to  those  free  from 
disease ;  he  replied  that  he  had  been  sick  before,  and 
that  his  youth  was  in  his  favor.  I  spoke  to  him  of 
the  need  of  preparation  to  meet  death  at  every  mo- 
ment of  his  being ;  he  said  he  hoped  his  time  would 
come  yet.  And  in  this  way  he  closed  every  avenue 
of  access  that  I  sought  to  open  to  his  heart. 

I  finally  ventured  to  ask  him  if  he  remembered  any 
thing  of  his  sainted  mother.  His  eyes  soon  mled,  and 
after  a  protracted  pause,  he  replied,  "  Oh  yes."  I  asked 


86  PARISH    PENCILINGS. 

A  mother's  memory.  Last  visit.  A  younger  listener. 

him  if  she  ever  prayed  for  him.  "  Often,"  was  his 
answer,  and  with  deep  emotion.  I  then  stated  to  him 
the  privilege  of  being  the  son  of  a  sainted  mother,  the 
blessing  of  having  her  yet  unanswered  prayers  on  rec- 
ord in  heaven  for  him,  and  the  way  of  salvation  through 
a  Savior.  His  attention  was  awakened;  and  after 
committing  him  in  prayer  to  the  Lord,  I  withdrew, 
deeply  impressed  with  the  whole  scene. 

My  visits  were  repeated  at  brief  intervals  for  some 
months,  with  varying  hopes  in  reference  to  his  trusting 
on  Christ  for  salvation.  On  my  last  visit  to  him,  I 
found  him  sitting  by  a  fire  in  early  summer,  and  wet 
with  perspiration  through  the  difficulty  of  breathing. 
I  plainly  saw  that  his  last  sands  were  running  in  the 
glass  of  life.  I  again  placed  Christ  before  him  in  the 
freeness  and  fullness  of  his  salvation ;  I  dwelt  on  the 
blessed  text,  "Whosoever  cometh  unto  me,  I  will  in 
no  wise  cast  out ;"  and  having  fully  explained  that 
whenever  whatsoever  sinner  went  to  Christ,  he  would 
find  gracious  acceptance,  I  urged  him,  like  the  dying 
malefactor,  to  go  in  the  very  extremity  of  life,  and 
told  him  that  heaven  would  be  his.  Feeling  it  was 
my  last  time,  I  sought  to  do  all  my  duty. 

There  sat  in  the  room  during  this  and  previous  vis- 
its a  younger  brother,  who  heard,  with  attention,  all 
that  was  said ;  and,  as  I  had  an  opportunity,  I  strove 
to  impress  him  with  the  importance  of  seeking  God  in 
the  days  of  health  and  of  youth,  without  yet  feeling 
that  any  deep  emotion  existed,  save  that  of  sympathy 
with  his  dying  brother. 

Not  long  after  my  visit,  as  I  predicted  to  his  friends, 


THE     SCENE     IN    A    GRAVE-YARD.  87 

The  funeral  day.  Thoughts  and  tombs.  Disturbed. 

this  young  man  died.  The  day  of  his  funeral  was  one 
of  brilliancy  and  beauty ;  the  trees  were  in  their  full 
verdure,  and  nature,  animate  and  inanimate,  seemed 
full  of  life  ;  and  a  funeral  procession  on  such  a  day 
was  in  utter  and  doleful  contrast  with  the  appearance 
of  the  heavens  above  and  of  the  earth  beneath.  I 
lingered  in  the  grave-yard  after  the  burial,  while  the 
mourners  went  about  the  streets.  Fatigued  and  op- 
pressed by  the  heat,  and  by  the  scenes  through  which 
I  had  passed,  I  took  my  seat  on  a  marble  slab  which 
surmounted,  in  table  form,  the  grave  of  a  once-honored 
citizen ;  and  there,  shielded  from  the  sun  by  an  um- 
brella, I  sat  musing  on  future  events.  My  thoughts 
ran  onward  to  the  judgmentr  and  I  imagined  myself 
amid  the  scenes  of  that  day  of  wonders.  I  heard  the 
sound  of  the  trumpet ;  I  saw  the  graves  opening ;  I 
saw  the  many  beloved  friends  that  I  had  committed  to 
the  dust  all  around  me,  rising — the  corruptible  putting 
on  incorruption,  and  the  mortal  putting  on  immortal- 
ity. And  while  pondering  who  of  these  ascending 
ones  would  take  their  places  on  the  right,  and  who  on 
the  left  hand  of  the  Judge,  I  heard  a  movement  behind 
me.  Feeling  that  I  was  alone,  I  was  startled  with  the 
noise  ;  and  on  turning  to  see  its  cause,  the  brother  of 
the  deceased  young  man,  who  had  been  repeatedly  a 
witness  of  my  solemn  interviews  with  him>  stood  be- 
fore me.  His  whole  aspect  and  demeanor  were  em- 
phatically solemn ;  they  spoke  the  feelings  that  were 
heaving  within  him.  "  Do  you,"  said  I,  in  a  tone 
modulated  into  sympathy  with  his  appearance,  "do 
you  want  any  thing  of  me  ?"  He  was  silent.  I  waited 


PARISH    PENCILING  S. 


The  great  question.  Conversation.  Confession. 

for  an  answer,  determined  that  he  should  break  the 
silence.  "  I  have  come,"  said  he,  after  a  long  pause, 
"  to  ask  you,  What  shall  I  do  to  be  saved  ?"  Never 
was  that  question  propounded  under  circumstances 
more  deeply  affecting.  There  was  the  fresh  clay  un- 
der which  the  remains  of  his  brother  were  just  laid, 
and  there  by  its  side  was  the  green  grave  of  his  sainted 
mother,  and  all  around  us  and  beneath  us  were  the 
graves  of  departed  generations.  I  gave  him  a  seat  by 
my  side ;  and  after  explaining  to  him  how  Jesus  was 
the  resurrection  and  the  life,  I  set  myself  deliberately 
to  work  to  answer  his  question. 

Fearing  that  his  feelings  were  the  result  of  sorrow 
and  affliction  because  of  the  death  of  his  brother,  and 
knowing  how  little  permanence  such  feelings  usually 
possess,  I  sought  to  find  the  cause  of  his  deep  serious- 
ness, when  the  following  conversation  ensued : 

"  You  ask  what  you  shall  do  to  be  saved.  How 
long  have  you  felt  that  you  are  a  lost  sinner  ?" 

"  For  several  months  past." 

"  Then  your  serious  feelings  have  not  been  caused 
by  the  death  of  your  brother  solely  ?" 

"  No ;  I  have  felt  for  months  that  I  am  a  sinner 
against  God,  that  I  deserve  eternal  death,  and  that, 
were  I  to  die  in  the  place  of  my  brother,  where  God 
and  Christ  is  I  never  could  go.  I  have  witnessed 
some  of  your  visits  to  my  brother,  and  they  have 
tended  much  to  produce  the  state  of  feeling  which  now 
oppresses  me." 

Being  satisfied  that  his  feelings  had  a  deeper  basis 
than  mere  sympathy,  I  explained  to  him  the  nature 


THE     SCENE     IN    A    GRAVE-YARD.  89 

Not  the  sorrow  of  the  world.  Faith.  Hoped  for  the  best. 

of  sin  as  committed  against  Grod,  and  how  the  punish- 
ment revealed  against  sin  was  its  just  deserts,  to  all 
which  he  gave  an  intelligent  and  direct  assent.  I 
thought  I  saw  that  his  was  not  the  sorrow  of  the 
world  which  worketh  death. 

Having  satisfied  myself  on  this  fundamental  point, 
I  sought  next  to  explain  to  him  God's  great  remedy 
for  sin,  as  embodied  in  that  simple  and  intelligible  text, 
"  He  that  belie veth  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  shall  be 
saved."  Placing  myself  in  "  Christ's  stead,"  I  repeated 
the  words,  "  Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  are  weary  and 
heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest." 

"  But  what,"  said  he,  "  is  it  to  come  ?" 

"  To  come,"  said  I,  "is  to  believe — to  act  faith  in 
Christ." 

"  But  what,"  said  he,  in  an  anxious  tone,  "  is  faith  ?" 

I  replied  that  "  faith  is  believing  what  Grod  has  said, 
and  doing  what  Grod  commands."  And  in  various 
ways,  both  from  Scripture  and  reason,  I  sought  to  ex- 
plain the  matter  to  him. 

We  walked  out  of  the  grave-yard  together,  and  as 
we  separated  at  its  gate,  I  entreated  him  to  cherish  the 
strivings  of  the  Spirit,  and  warned  him  against  the  ef- 
fects of  quenching  them.  But  while  he  promised  well, 
knowing  the  deceitfulness  of  the  heart,  and  how  like 
unto  the  morning  cloud  and  the  early  dew  are  the  im- 
pressions made  by  afflictive  providences,  my  fears  sur- 
passed my  hopes.  Yet  I  hoped  for  the  best,  and  prayed 
for  his  conversion. 

On  the  succeeding  Sabbath  he  was  an  earnest  hear- 
er of  the  Grospel.  He  took  his  seat  in  my  weekly  con- 


90  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

Hoped  and  confessed.  Life  and  death.  Sad  tendency. 

ference.  Soon  he  saw  that  Jesus  came  to  save  sinners ; 
that  he  was  a  sinner,  and  that  Jesus  came  to  save 
him.  He  trusted  and  rejoiced.  Promptly,  yet  quiet- 
ly, he  took  his  place  among  the  followers  of  Christ. 
Since  then,  years  have  passed  away,  through  which  he 
lived  unto  the  Lord.  Consumption — the  disease  which 
desolated  his  family — laid  its  hand  upon  him ;  and 
when  the  last  sands  in  the  glass  of  his  life  were  run- 
ning, he  spoke  of  the  scene  in  the  grave-yard  with  in- 
tense interest.  It  was  amid  the  graves  of  the  dead 
he  was  led  first  to  indulge  the  Christian  hope  of  eternal 
life ;  and  when  the  darkness  of  the  valley  of  death  was 
collecting  around  him,  that  hope  was  as  bright  as  the 
sun  at  high  noon.  With  faltering  accents  he  could 
say, 

"  Amid  the  darkness  and  the  deeps, 

Thou  art  my  comfort,  thou  my  stay  ; 
Thy  staff  supports  my  feeble  steps, 
Thy  rod  directs  my  doubtful  way.1' 

The  lessons  of  this  narrative  are  many  and  impor- 
tant. 

1.  It  teaches  us  the  sad  tendency  of  the  unrenewed 
heart  to  postpone  preparation  for  death.  When  con- 
fessing that  preparation  is  essential  and  necessary,  the 
carnal  heart  will  frame  any  excuse  to  postpone  it,  and 
will  resist  any  argument  which  urges  to  the  making 
of  it  now.  We  have  heard  the  man  of  fourscore  and 
ten  years  saying,  with  a  tremulous  and  almost  inaudi- 
ble voice,  "  There  is  time  enough  yet."  And  in  the 
case  of  this  sick  young  man,  when  his  lungs  were  so 
far  gone  as  to  render  breathing  only  possible ;  when 
the  labor  of  breathing  was  so  great  as  to  convert  his 


THE     SCENE     IN    A    GRAVE-YARD.  91 

The  web  of  hope.  The  great  slayer.  Wayside  seed. 

whole  body  into  a  fountain  of  tears ;  when  vitality  had 
commenced  its  retreat  from  the  extremities,  and  when 
the  silver  cords  were  loosing  in  every  direction,  even 
then  was  he  weaving  the  web  of  hope  as  to  the  future  ! 
Oh,  reader,  if  there  is  any  evil  tendency  of  your  heart 
which  should  create  more  alarm  than  another,  it  is  the 
tendency  to  postpone  preparation  for  death  to  an  un- 
certain future.  You  are  not  so  much  in  danger  from 
infidelity,  crimson  sins,  or  open  resistance  to  the  au- 
thority of  G-od,  as  you  are  from  procrastination.  While 
other  sins  have  slain  their  thousands,  this  has  slain  its 
tens  of  thousands.  If  the  Spirit  is  now  striving,  now 
is  your  accepted  time  ;  and  the  days  of  sickness  or  of 
old  age  are  no  better  adapted  to  secure  the  great  end 
of  life  than  they  are  to  secure  any  of  its  less  important 
ends. 

2.  It  teaches  us  that  although  we  may  fail  in  doing 
the  direct  good  which  we  honestly  seek,  we  may  be 
doing  a  great  good  indirectly.  I  sought  with  earnest- 
ness the  salvation  of  that  young  man  when  the  vulture 
Consumption  was  preying  on  his  vitals.  And  while 
we  can  not  look  behind  the  curtain  which  screens 
eternal  things  from  our  view,  or  know  what  God's  grace 
and  power  may  effect  in  the  dying  hour,  yet,  as  he 
passed  behind  that  curtain,  he  left  not  the  evidences 
of  true  faith  which  we  all  desired.  But  what  was 
said  to  him,  perhaps  in  vain,  was  not  lost  upon  his 
younger  and  listening  brother.  Although  the  seed  fell 
by  the  way-side,  the  ground  was  prepared  for  its  recep- 
tion. If  my  visits  were  lost  upon  the  dying,  they  were 
blessed  to  the  living ;  and  if  the  good  directly  sought 


92  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

Some  saved.  Sowing  beside  all  waters. 

was  not  obtained,  perhaps  a  greater  good  was  indirectly 
effected.  Our  ineffective  efforts  to  save  some  may  be 
blessed  to  the  salvation  of  others  for  whom  they  were 
not  directly  intended.  The  life-boat  may  bring  back 
others  safely  to  the  shore,  although  the  waves  may  be 
made  the  winding-sheet  of  the  friend  for  whose  rescue 
it  was  sent  out  amid  the  raging  billows. 

3.  It  teaches  us  to  preach  the  Grospel  every  where. 
We  must  sow  our  seed  beside  all  waters,  not  knowing 
which  shall  prosper,  this  or  that ;  nor  must  we  reserve 
our  pungent  appeals  for  the  crowded  church  or  for  the 
large  assembly.  Never  are  appeals  made  more  suc- 
cessfully than  to  sinners  alone.  Years  have  passed 
since  the  occurrence  of  that  scene  in  the  grave-yard, 
but  its  memories  are  yet  fresh ;  nor  do  I  remember 
ever  having  preached  the  Grospel  with  more  unction, 
spirit,  directness,  or  effect,  than  when  that  young  man 
was  my  only  auditor,  and  the  tombstone  my  pulpit. 
His  life  and  death  gave  proof  that  the  seed  fell  in  good 
ground,  and  its  ripe  fruits  have  been  collected  into  the 
garner. 


HELENA,  THE  MOTHER  OF  CONSTANTINE.  93 


Constantiue.  His  history. 


HELENA,  THE  MOTHER  OF  CONSTANTINE.* 

CONSTANTINE,  surnamed  the  Great,  holds  a  conspic- 
uous place  among  the  heroes  of  history.  The  son  of 
Constantius  Chlorus,  he  was  born,  as  is  supposed,  in 
Nissa,  in  the  year  272.  Trained  to  arms  from  his 
youth,  he  served  with  high  distinction  in  the  Persian 
war  under  G-alerius.  Fearing  for  his  personal  safety 
because  of  the  jealousy  of  G-alerius,  he  fled  to  Graul 
just  in  time  to  join  the  army  of  his  father  hi  his  ex- 
pedition against  the  Picts  in  Britain,  when  he  was 
about  thirty-four  years  of  age.  Chlorus  died  in  306, 
and  his  son  immediately  asserted  his  claim  to  a  share 
of  the  empire.  This  claim  was  reluctantly  acknowl- 
edged by  G-alerius,  and  with  the  title  of  Csesar  he  be- 
came master  of  the  country  beyond  the  Alps.  He  took 
up  his  residence  in  Treves,  and  governed  his  people 
with  justice  and  moderation  —  loved  by  his  subjects 
and  feared  by  his  enemies.  Soon,  however,  he  became 
involved  in  wars  with  rival  emperors,  in  all  of  which 
his  arms  were  victorious  ;  and  by  the  decisive  victory 
over  Maxentius  at  Saxa  Rubra,  near  Rome,  he  became 
sole  master  of  the  West  in  the  year  312. 

Soon  after  this,  important  events  took  place  hi  the 
East.  On  the  death  of  the  tyrant  G-alerius  in  311, 
Licinius  and  Maximinus  divided  his  empire  between 
*  Written  for  Appleton's  "Women  of  Ancient  Christianity." 


94  PARISH     PENCIL  INGS. 

Licinius.  Constantinople  chosen.  Open  (juestions. 

them.  Their  clashing  interests  soon  led  them  to  war, 
in  which  Maximinus  was  defeated.  The  number  of 
emperors  was  thus  reduced  to  two,  Licinius  in  the 
East,  and  Constantino  in  the  West.  Between  these 
also  a  war  commenced,  which  ended  in  the  complete 
defeat  of  Licinius  in  the  two  great  battles  of  Adrianoplo 
and  Chalcedon,  and  in  his  entire  surrender  on  the  con- 
dition that  his  life  should  be  spared.  Thus  Constan- 
tino became  the  sole  master  of  the  empire,  when  he 
transferred  the  seat  of  his  government  to  Byzantium, 
which  he  called  after  his  own  name,  Constantinople, 
or  the  city  of  Constantino.  Here  he  reigned  in  peace 
until  his  death,  which  took  place  in  337. 

The  character  of  this  great  man  is  very  variously 
estimated  by  historians.  If  some  would  make  him  a 
great  saint,  others  would  make  him  a  great  sinner. 
The  miraculous  interposition  of  a  cross  in  the  air  in 
his  behalf,  claimed  by  some,  others  would  convert  into 
an  evidence  that  he  was  an  impostor.  Whether  he 
was  a  Christian  or  a  heathen,  a  good  man  or  a  bad 
one — whether  his  so-called  conversion  was  an  injury 
or  a  benefit  to  the  Church,  are  yet  open  questions,  and 
are  now  no  nearer  settlement  than  they  were  hundreds 
of  years  ago.  Yet  the  chivalry  of  his  youth— -his 
promptness  in  assuming  the  purple  as  soon  as  it  fell 
from  the  shoulders  of  his  royal  father  —  his  victories 
over  Maxentius — his  moderation  and  justice  in  the 
West — his  successful  wars  with  Licinius — his  going 
up,  amid  so  many  difficulties,  to  be  the  sole  master  of 
the  Roman  world — his  transference  of  the  seat  of  em- 
pire from  the  West  to  the  East  —  his  founding  of  a 


HELENA,  THE  MOTHER  OF  CONSTANTINE.   95 

"  The  Great."  Who  his  mother  ?  Her  divorce. 

great  city,  and  locating  it  with  so  much  sagacity,  and, 
above  all,  his  support  of  the  religion  of  Christ  by  con- 
verting the  state  from  being  its  persecutor  to  its  patron, 
give  him  a  fair  title  to  be  called  "  the  Great,"  a  term 
which  all  Christian  history  has  cheerfully  yielded  to 
him. 

The  fame  of  the  man  has  rendered  posterity  atten- 
tive to  the  most  minute  circumstances  of  his  life,  and 
especially  to  those  which  entered  into  the  formation  of 
his  character.  And  as  the  conduct  of  a  mother  is  in- 
fluential, to  a  proverb,  in  the  formation  of  the  charac- 
ter of  her  children,  the  question  arises,  Who  was  the 
mother  of  Constantine,  and  what  was  her  manner  of 
life? 

On  these  questions  we  also  find  the  testimony  of 
history  at  variance.  It  would  seem  as  if  she  were  a 
Briton  by  birth ;  but  whether  she  was  the  daughter  of 
King  Coel,  "  who  first  built  walls  around  the  city  of 
Colchester,"  or  of  an  innkeeper,  is  not  determined. 
Butler  asserts  her  royal,  and  Gibbon  her  plebeian  de- 
scent. She  became  the  wife  of  Constantius  while  yet 
only  a  private  officer  in  the  army,  and  the  mother  of 
Constantine.  "When  her  son  was  about  eighteen  years 
of  age,  his  father  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  Caesar, 
which  fortunate  event  was  attended  with  her  divorce, 
in  order  to  make  way  for  an  imperial  alliance  with 
Theodora,  the  step-child  of  Maximianus.  By  this  event 
Helen  and  her  son  fell  into  a  state  of  disgrace  and  hu- 
miliation, from  which  they  subsequently  arose  by  the 
prudence,  the  justice,  the  ambition,  and  the  military 
prowess  of  Constantine. 


96  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

When  converted.  The  cross  in  the  air.  The  age. 

When  or  by  what  means  she  became  a  convert 
to  the  Christian  faith  is  utterly  uncertain.  If  some 
would  represent  her,  hi  her  state  of  divorce,  as  training 
up  her  son  in  the  ways  of  religion  with  the  resignation 
of  a  Christian  matron,  others  would  represent  her  as  a 
pagan  until  after  the  vision  or  the  dream  of  seeing  a 
cross  in  the  air,  which  led  to  the  so-called  conversion 
of  Constantine.  We  believe  the  truth  in  the  case  to  be, 
that  while  her  son  played  a  double  part,  to  conciliate 
the  Christian  and  pagan  parties  in  the  state,  favoring 
less  and  less  the  pagan,  and  more  and  more  the  Chris- 
tian, until  just  previous  to  his  death  he  submitted  to 
the  rite  of  baptism,  at  an  advanced  period  of  her  life 
Helen  became  a  devout  Christian,  and,  in  the  way  and 
manner  of  her  age  and  country,  a  devotee  to  the  cause 
which  she  espoused. 

Hers  was  an  age  when  the  tendency  was  to  the  out- 
ward in  the  spirit  of  religion.  The  sensuous  had  al- 
ready made  vast  encroachments  on  the  spiritual ;  and 
the  devotion  claimed  by  God,  and  which  should  be 
given  to  the  subduing  of  all  the  powers  and  affections 
to  the  obedience  of  Christ,  was  consecrated  to  pilgrim- 
ages to  sacred  places,  to  the  collection  of  relics,  and  to 
the  erection  and  the  adorning  of  churches.  From  all 
portions  of  the  earth,  men  nocked  to  the  places  where 
Christ  was  born,  suffered,  and  was  buried ;  princes 
made  pilgrimages  to  the  tombs  of  apostles  and  mar- 
tyrs ;  pilgrims  even  penetrated  Arabia  to  see  the  dung- 
heap  and  to  kiss  the  earth  on  which  Job  had  suffered 
with  so  much  resignation.  Helen  fully  yielded  herself 
to  this  spirit  of  her  tunes,  and,  by  her  high  example 


HELENA,  THE  MOTHER  OF  CONSTANTINE.   97 

A  devotee.  Her  life.  Our  conclusion. 

and  patronage,  greatly  promoted  it.  Honored  by  her 
son,  and  the  wealth  of  the  empire  placed  at  her  com- 
mand, she  devoted  her  rank  and  treasures  to  religious 
services.  Assuming  the  plainest  dress,  she  mixed  with 
the  people,  was  punctual  in  all  her  duties,  distributed 
to  the  needy  of  her  abundance,  erected  churches,  and 
contributed  largely  to  enrich  and  adorn  them.  When 
her  son  became  master  of  the  East,  as  of  the  "West,  by 
the  conquest  of  Licinius,  she  repaired  to  Jerusalem, 
though  then  far  advanced  in  life,  and,  as  is  said,  dis- 
covered the  true  cross  on  which  the  Redeemer  was 
crucified,  laid  the  foundations  of  the  Church  on  the  hill 
of  Calvary,  and  manifested  her  zeal  for  religion  by  the 
most  princely  benefactions.  While  traveling  with 
royal  pomp  throughout  the  East,  she  yet  displayed 
great  condescension.  She  was  kind  and  affable  to  all. 
She  waited,  as  a  servant,  at  the  tables  of  the  poor.  The 
soldiers,  the  poor,  the  condemned,  were  every  where  the 
objects  of  her  regard.  She  returned  to  Rome,  where 
she  lived  in  the  constant  performance  of  acts  of  piety 
and  charity  until  her  death,  which  occurred  in  August, 
328 ;  and  her  ashes  are  now  said  to  be  kept  in  a  rich 
shrine  of  porphyry  under  the  high  altar  of  the  Church 
of  Ara  Cosli  in  Rome. 

Passing  over  the  monkish  legends,  mainly  the  pro- 
ductions of  the  Dark  Ages,  which  narrate  her  finding 
of  the  true  cross,  the  miracle  which  proved  its  truth, 
the  wonders  wrought  by  her  intercession,  which  would 
seem  to  render  her  a  fictitious  personage,  we  are  forced 
to  the  conclusion  that  Helena  was  a  devoted  Christian 
woman.  What  seems  in  her  character  more  sensuous 

E 


98  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Legend  writers.  A  bright  star. 

than  spiritual  was  the  result  of  the  tendency  of  her 
age ;  and  what  seems  in  that  character  disjointed,  and 
of  monstrous  proportions,  and  incredible,  we  must  at- 
tribute to  the  imagination  of  those  writers  of  legends 
who  sought  to  impress  the  living  by  the  most  unnat- 
ural and  incredible  narratives  of  the  dead.  Having 
embraced  Christianity  late  in  life,  she  sought  to  re- 
trieve the  many  years  spent  in  darkness  and  sin  by  a 
consecration  of  her  time,  her  station,  her  wealth  to  the 
promotion  of  religion  ;  and  her  name  is  embalmed  by 
the  entire  Church  of  (rod,  and  is  worthy  of  a  place 
among  those  who  have  fought  the  good  fight  *>f  faith, 
and  laid  hold  of  eternal  life.  The  mother  of  Constan- 
tino is  a  bright  star  in  that  bright  galaxy  formed  by 
the  illustrious  women  of  early  Christianity,  and  whose 
characters  should  be  held  up  to  every  age  for  the  imi- 
tation of  their  sex. 


THE     FUNERAL     AT     SEA.  99 

The  ship.  A  passenger.  Disappointed  hopes. 


i  THE  FUNERAL  AT  SEA. 

THE  noble  packet  ship  in  which  we  were  to  cross  the 
Atlantic  was  at  anchor  in  the  East  River.  A  strong 
northeast  storm  had  prevented  her  from  sailing  on  her 
appointed  day,  and  there  she  lay,  fully  equipped  for  her 
voyage,  waiting  favorable  winds.  The  day  opened 
with  a  brilliant  sky  and  a  fine  northwester,  and  at 
nine  in  the  morning,  the  passengers,  with  their  friends, 
were  on  the  deck,  when  the  anchor  was  heaved,  and 
we  commenced  our  voyage.  As  we  passed  down  the 
magnificent  bay  of  New  York,  I  observed  among  our 
company  a  young  man  of  foreign  appearance,  with 
sallow  complexion,  sunken  eye,  and  interesting  mien. 
There  was  in  company  with  him  a  young  female,  who 
manifested  in  him  the  deepest  interest,  and  who  only 
left  his  side  when  all  friends  were  ordered  into  the 
steamer  which  had  taken  us  to  the  Hook.  Their  part- 
ing was  most  affecting  and  tender.  The  young  man 
was  a  native  of  Ireland,  and,  on  the  advice  of  physi- 
cians, was  returning  there,  to  seek,  in  his  native  air,  a 
remedy  for  a  deep-seated  consumption.  A  widowed 
mother  was  expecting  his  return  home  ;  and  the  heart 
of  his  female  friend,  on  which  his  image  was  impress- 
ed, was  throbbing  with  anxiety  for  his  return.  Both 
were  to  be  disappointed. 

He  had  taken  his  passage  in  the  second  cabin,  and, 


100  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

His  cabin.  The  first  visit.  Instructed. 

as  the  winds  and  waves  of  the  Atlantic  soon  drove  us 
all  to  our  sick-berths,  I  had  lost  sight  of  him  for  many 
days,  and  even  his  first  appearance  on  shipboard  pass- 
ed away  from  my  memory.  When  our  voyage  was 
about  half  made,  a  female,  to  whom  I  was  a  stranger, 
informed  me  that  a  young  man  in  her  cabin  was  very 
sick,  and  greatly  needed  religious  instruction.  I  sent 
to  ask  if  a  visit  from  me  would  be  agreeable  ;  and  be- 
ing informed  that  it  would  be,  I  hastened  to  his  berth. 
His  cabin  was  filthy,  and  filled  with  impure  air  ;  and 
having  not  a  relative  or  acquaintance  on  board,  his 
person,  up  to  this  time,  was  not  sufficiently  cared  for. 
My  interview  with  him  was  deeply  affecting.  He  was 
a  child  of  Protestant  parents.  On  coming  to  the  "United 
States,  he  had  given  up  all  regard  for  religious  things, 
and  lived  only  for  pleasure  and  the  world.  A  cold  had 
grown  into  a  consumption,  which  was  now  near  its 
closing  act ;  and  as  tenderly  as  faithfulness  would  per- 
mit, I  suggested  that,  should  our  voyage  be  protracted, 
as  there  was  danger,  he  might  not  live  to  reach  his 
home.  The  idea  struck  him  with  force,  and  he  turned 
away  and  wept.  On  recovering  himself,  I  asked  him 
as  to  his  preparations  for  death.  The  answer  was  full 
proof  of  the  darkness  of  his  mind  as  to  spiritual  things. 
"  "Why,"  said  he,  "  should  I  fear  to  die  ;  as  I  have  never 
done  any  thing  wrong  ?"  I  saw  at  once  the  need  of  a 
protracted  visit,  and  taking  my  seat  on  a  greasy  trunk 
by  his  side,  I  sought  to  instruct  him  into  the  way  of 
the  Lord.  I  told  him  of  our  fall — of  our  native  deprav- 
ity— of  the  great  truth  that  we  are  all  sinners,  and  un- 
der the  sentence  of  the  law,  which  is  death.  I  then 


THE     FUNERAL     AT     SEA.  101 

The  effect.  Keeping  Easter.  Sudden  call. 

sought  by  various  simple  illustrations  to  fix  on  his  mind 
a  sense  of  his  own  sinfulness.  Having  obtained  a  no 
very  hearty  assent  to  my  statements,  I  then  sought  to 
place  Christ  before  him  as  the  way  of  escape  for  sin- 
ners, as  the  only  way  to  heaven;  and  having  placed 
the  Grospel  way  of  salvation  fully  before  him,  surround- 
ed by  his  fellow-passengers  in  the  same  cabin,  I  com- 
mitted him  to  Grod  in  prayer,  and  especially  implored 
that  the  ocean  might  not  be  made  his  grave.  The  ef- 
fect upon  him  I  could  not  well  see,  but  upon  others  it 
was  deeply  solemn.  I  promised  to  visit  him  again. 

This  visit  was  early  in  the  week.  On  the  day  fol- 
lowing he  greatly  revived,  and  played  cards.  The  suc- 
ceeding Sabbath  was  to  be  Easter  Sunday,  and  after 
the  manner  of  those  who  observe  such  times  and  sea- 
sons, he  commenced  his  preparations  to  keep  it.  With 
him  and  others  it  was  to  be  a  jolly  day.  I  sent  kind 
inquiries  from  day  to  day  as  to  his  health,  and  asked 
for  another  interview,  but  it  was  declined  for  the  pres- 
ent. On  Saturday  I  learned  he  was  quite  well,  and 
that  he  hoped  to  be  on  deck  on  Sunday.  There  was  a 
change  in  the  weather  toward  the  close  of  the  day ; 
the  wind  increased,  and  the  atmosphere  became  quite 
damp.  A  little  after  midnight  I  was  called  from  my 
berth  to  do  what  I  could  for  the  dying  man.  I  crowd- 
ed my  way,  half  dressed,  to  his  berth,  where  he  lay 
panting  away  his  life.  The  glaze  of  death  was  already 
in  his  eyes — the  sweat  of  death  was  on  all  his  mem- 
bers, and  his  every  sense  was  closed.  He  was  beyond 
all  aid  from  man.  The  scene  was  deeply  affecting. 
There,  on  the  bosom  of  the  wide  Atlantic,  at  midnight, 


102  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  scene.  Midnight  sermon.  Superstition. 

the  winds  high,  and  the  billows  raging,  lay  a  man,  sur- 
rounded only  by  strangers,  in  the  last  moments  of  his 
existence  !  Nor  were  these  strangers  neglectful  of 
him.  "Women  were  there,  who,  with  maternal  and 
sisterly  solicitude,  ministered  to  his  wants,  and  wept 
over  his  sufferings ;  and  feeling  that  I  could  do  the 
dying  man  no  good,  I  addressed  myself  to  the  living. 
The  profane  swearer — the  card-player — the  papist — 
the  infidel  were  there.  But  death  has  power  to  silence 
all  objections,  and  to  open  all  ears  to  serious  instruc- 
tions. I  pointed  them  to  the  end  of  all  flesh,  and  to 
the  importance  of  preparation  for  it,  and  we  then  went 
together  to  the  throne  of  God  to  ask  for  grace  for  the 
dying  and  the  living ;  and  not  knowing  the  hour  at 
which  the  struggle  would  close,  I  retired  to  my  berth, 
not  to  sleep,  but  to  ponder  the  scene  I  had  just  wit- 
nessed, one  of  the  most  solemn  I  ever  beheld.  At  the 
dawn  of  morning  it  was  announced  in  my  state-room 
that  he  was  no  more. 

Knowing  something  as  to  the  superstition  of  sailors 
about  the  continuance  of  a  dead  body  on  board,  I  made 
inquiry  as  to  his  burial.  It  was  ordered  for  an  early 
hour,  and  before  breakfast.  I  asked  the  captain  to 
defer  it  until  after  breakfast,  that  we  might,  with  all 
the  passengers  and  crew,  have  a  religious  service.  He 
consented.  At  the  hour  appointed,  the  corpse  was 
brought  on  deck,  sewed  up  in  sail-cloth,  with  a  weight 
attached  to  its  feet,  and  laid  upon  a  plank,  one  end  of 
which  extended  over  the  side  of  the  ship,  and  the  other 
rested  on  the  long-boat  near  the  mainmast,  thus  form- 
ing an  inclined  plane.  The  flag,  with  its  stars  and 


THE     FUNERAL     AT     SEA.  103 

Funeral  sermon.  The  burial.  Ocean  grave. 

stripes,  covered  the  capstan,  on  which  lay  a  Bible. 
The  passengers  and  crew  were  all  assembled.  There 
were  veteran  tars  and  veteran  sinners,  but  all  were 
affected ;  there  were  Protestants  and  papists,  but  all 
heard  with  equal  interest.  I  preached  from  the  text, 
"  And  the  sea  gave  up  the  dead  which  were  in  it ;" 
and  as  the  great  truths  pertaining  to  the  resurrection 
were  unfolded,  and  as  the  picture  was  drawn  of  the 
wide  sea  by  which  we  were  surrounded,  and  whose 
waves  were  singing  a  death-dirge  around  us,  giving 
up  all  its  dead,  a  solemn  stillness  pervaded  the  mixed 
congregation.  The  order  was  now  given  to  bury  the 
dead,  when  two  sailors  gently  raised  the  end  of  the 
plank  which  rested  on  the  long-boat,  and  the  corpse 
slid  into  its  ocean  grave  !  One  plunge,  and  all  was 
over !  It  sank  to  rise  no  more  until  the  sea  gives  up 
its  dead  ;  and  while  it  makes  but  little  difference 
where  the  body  is  laid,  if  the  spirit  is  prepared  for  its 
home  in  the  skies,  yet  there  is  something  forbidding 
in  a  burial  at  sea,  which  makes  it  not  to  be  desired. 
Death  at  sea  is  usually  not  expected  there ;  friends 
are  generally  absent ;  it  is  away  from  the  sepulchres  of 
our  fathers.  No  mother's  tears  can  bedew  our  graves ; 
ho  stone  can  tell  where  our  dust  reposes  ;  no  hand  of 
affection  can  plant  the  yew,  the  cypress,  or  the  weep- 
ing-willow at  our  head ;  no  green  grass  in  the  spring, 
an  emblem  of  the  resurrection,  will  ever  cover  our  nar- 
row house.  Our  bones  may  rest  as  quietly  as  on  land 
amid  the  pearls  and  corals  of  the  ocean,  but  the  wide, 
wild  waste  above  has  no  attraction.  And  as  the  noise 
of  that  one  plunge  sounded  through  the  ship,  no  doubt 
the  prayer  of  my  lips  was  the  echo  of  the  sentiment 


104  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

A  prayer.  Disappointments.  The  heart  of  woman. 

of  all  hearts,  "  0  Lord,  if  consistent  with  thy  most  holy 
will,  let  none  of  my  descendants,  to  the  remotest  gen- 
eration, find  their  grave  in  the  ocean." 

This  affecting  incident  suggested  many  thoughts 
which  I  sought  to  improve  to  myself  and  others  during 
the  remainder  of  our  voyage. 

How  varied  the  disappointments  caused  by  death  ! 
In  this  case,  the  expectations  of  a  mother  as  to  the  re- 
turn of  her  son,  and  of  a  female  as  to  the  return  of  a 
brother  or  lover,  were  dashed.  The  idol  of  their  hearts 
found  an  unexpected  grave  amid  the  billows  of  the 
Atlantic  !  How  many  such  disappointments  is  death 
daily  making  !  How  the  pillars  of  our  houses  are  fall- 
ing when  apparently  strongest !  how  the  lights  of  our 
dwellings  are  going  out  when  shining  brightest !  how 
the  icy  fingers  of  Death  tear  in  pieces  the  web  of  our 
hope  when  almost  woven!  how  often  it  dashes  from 
our  hand  the  cup  of  blessing  as  we  are  raising  it  to 
our  lips  !  and  yet  how  rarely  we  take  these  disappoint- 
ments into  our  calculations  as  to  the  continuance  of 
our  earthly  comforts ! 

How  tender  and  sympathizing  the  heart  of  woman  ! 
This  young  man  was  an  utter  stranger  to  all  on  board 
the  ship ;  his  conduct  was  not  such  as  to  win  the  re- 
gards of  the  females  in  the  cabin  with  him ;  and  yet, 
when  he  became  unable  to  help  himself,  although  often 
grieved  by  his  profanity,  they  became  to  him  angels 
of  mercy.  "With  a  solicitude  which  increased  with  the 
progress  of  his  disease,  they  watched  over  him,  moist- 
ening his  parched  lips,  wiping  his  pallid  brow,  rubbing 
into  warmth  his  chilled  extremities,  and  dividing  with 
him  their  own  little  comforts  ;  and  when  committed  to 


THE     FUNERAL     AT     SEA.  105 

The  cup  sweetened.  Multitudes  in  ocean  graves. 

the  waves,  there  was  not  a  dry  eye  among  them  all ! 
How  like  unto  the  cup  put  into  the  hands  of  the  suf- 
fering Savior  would  be  the  cup  of  life,  were  it  not  for 
the  sweet  ingredients  infused  into  it  by  the  kind  hand 
of  virtuous  woman ! 

How  intensely  interesting  will  be  the  scene  present- 
ed by  the  sea  on  the  sound  of  the  resurrection  trum- 
pet !  "What  multitudes  lie  beneath  its  waves !  On 
its  bosom  battles  have  been  fought,  and  lost,  and  won ; 
navies  have  been  wrecked,  ships  have  foundered,  and 
by  storm,  accident,  disease,  millions  have  there  found 
a  grave.  It  may  be  that  the  ocean  covers  the  antedi- 
luvian world,  and  that  the  millions  who  perished  in  the 
Deluge  repose  beneath  its  waves ;  and  the  dead  there, 
small  and  great,  shall  rise  on  the  sound  of  the  trum- 
pet !  Not  one  shall  be  missing  from  the  vast  assem- 
bly that  will  crowd  around  the  great  white  throne ! 
And  what  a  scene  will  the  sea  present  when,  in  answer 
to  the  trumpet  sounding  over  it,  it  shall  give  up  its 
dead !  when  it  shall  lift  up  its  waves  on  high,  that 
those  rising  from  its  fathomless  depths  may  pass  from 
their  snowy  summit  into  the  presence  of  the  Judge ! 

How  needful  a  constant  preparation  for  death !  Grod 
is  the  God  of  the  sea  as  of  the  dry  land  ;  they  equally 
lie  within  the  kingdom  of  his  providence,  and  we  are 
equally  exposed  to  death  on  the  one  as  on  the  other. 
Hence  the  need  of  a  constant  preparation  for  it.  We 
know  not  what  a  day  may  bring  forth.  At  the  very 
hour  when  this  young  man  expected  to  be  on  deck, 
keeping  Easter  with  his  jolly  companions,  the  waves 
of  the  Atlantic  were  made  his  winding-sheet ! 

E  2 


106  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 


A  character. 


THE  LAST  GAME  OF  CARDS. 

ON  my  first  appearance  among  my  people  as  their 
pastor,  my  attention  was  strongly  arrested  by  the  ap- 
pearance of  one  of  my  hearers.  He  was  an  aged  man, 
and  his  whole  exterior  evinced  that,  although  moving 
in  the  more  humble  walks  of  life,  he  was  a  charac- 
ter. Although  afflicted  with  the  shaking  palsy,  his  step 
was  firm,  and,  under  the  circumstances,  quick ;  his 
countenance  was  marked,  and,  although  shaded  by  a 
massive  pair  of  spectacles,  was  full  of  emotion.  With 
his  head  slightly  inclined,  he  urged  his  way  through 
the  crowded  aisle  to  a  pew  in  front  of  the  pulpit,  where 
he  reverently  took  his  seat,  and  by  silent  supplication 
prepared  himself  for  the  worship  of  God  ;  and  what- 
ever might  be  the  state  of  the  weather,  there  he  sat  on 
each  returning  Sabbath,  as  long  as  his  health  permit- 
ted, and  with  the  regularity  of  the  sun  ;  and  his  whole 
appearance  evinced  that  he  was  a  deeply  interested 
worshiper.  His  apparent  anxiety  to  hear  was  greatly 
increased  by  a  partial  deafness ;  and  when  the  love  of 
Christ  was  the  theme  of  discourse,  the  big  spectacles 
were  often  removed  that  he  might  wipe  away  the  fall- 
ing tear. 

I  felt  anxious  to  know  something  about  the  history 
of  a  man  whose  appearance  thus  strongly  arrested  my 
attention.  As  I  was  a  new  pastor,  he  was  frank,  but 


THE     LAST     GAME     O  F     C  A  R  D  S.  107 

His  history.  Morals.  A  storm. 

somewhat  reserved  in  our  first  interview  ;  but  his  con- 
fidence increased  with  our  acquaintance,  and  soon  he 
unbosomed  to  me  his  whole  heart ;  and  the  following  is, 
in  brief,  his  narrative,  as  more  than  once  detailed  to 
me  by  himself: 

He  was  a  youth  at  the  commencement  of  the  war 
of  the  Revolution,  and  not  long  after  its  commence- 
ment, enlisted  in  the  regular  army.  He  fought  nobly 
in  many  of  its  battles,  and  at  the  close  of  the  war  re- 
turned to  private  life,  a  thorough  adept  in  almost  all 
the  vices  of  the  camp.  He  drank,  swore,  and  gambled, 
until  he  became  a  proverb  for  these  vices.  Thus,  with 
a  family  growing  up  around  him,  he  pursued  his  me- 
chanical profession  in  a  small  way,  until  old  age  had 
commenced  its  encroachments  upon  him.  Notwith- 
standing his  vices,  his  frank,  manly,  and  decided  char- 
acter always  obtained  for  him  respect.  His  sons  grew 
up  in  imitation  of  the  father's  example,  and  in  the  prac- 
tice of  his  vices;  and  many  a  night  did  they  spend, 
corrupting  one  another  at  the  bottle,  and  cheating  one 
another  at  the  card-table,  amid  mutual  recriminations 
when  they  lost  or  won. 

In  the  winter  of  1807  there  occurred  a  storm,  which, 
commencing  early  in  the  afternoon,  raged  with  great 
violence  through  the  night.  As  there  was  no  exit  from 
the  house,  the  father  invited  the  son  to  the  card-table. 
Bets  were  made  ;  and  seeing  that  the  son  was  gaining 
the  advantage,  the  father  ordered  the  brandy  bottle, 
hoping  that  by  getting  his  son  drunk  he  might  extin- 
guish his  wits,  and  thus  come  off  the  winner.  For 
this  purpose,  while  pouring  out  for  his  son,  he  abstained 


108  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Unnatural  fight.  Reflections.  Conviction. 

himself.  In  the  proportion  the  son  drank,  he  became 
the  loser ;  and,  enraged  by  brandy  and  his  losses,  he 
charged  his  father  with  cheating  him.  A  fight  ensued, 
in  which  the  father  was  the  victor ;  and  after  first 
making  him  drunk,  then  winning  his  money,  and  then 
severely  beating  him,  he  shut  up  his  son  in  his  bed- 
room. 

From  the  room  where  that  card-table  was  spread,  a 
feeble  light  might  be  seen  through  the  pelting  of  the 
storm,  sending  out  its  sickly  rays  through  the  whole 
night  upon  the  darkness  of  the  tempest.  Having  lock- 
ed up  his  drunken  and  beaten  son,  the  father  returned 
to  the  fire  to  prepare  for  his  own  retirement  to  rest. 
And  very  soon  the  tempest  without  was  but  a  faint 
emblem  of  that  which  raged  in  his  own  bosom.  The 
question  arose,  What  have  I  been  doing  ?  That  sug- 
gested another,  and  another,  and  another,  until  the 
enormity  of  his  conduct  was  opened  in  all  its  crimson 
folds  before  him.  He  saw  his  vile  conduct  as  a  parent 
in  corrupting  his  own  son — teaching  him  to  swear,  to 
drink,  to  gamble — and  in  beating  him  for  conduct  in- 
duced by  the  poisoned  cup  which,  with  his  own  hand, 
he  put  to  his  lips.  His  noble  soul  awoke  as  from  a 
dream,  and  he  detested  it  all.  His  conduct,  in  its  sin- 
fulness  toward  (rod,  rose  up  before  him,  and  he  ab- 
horred it.  He  looked  forward  to  the  judgment  bar, 
where  a  strict  account  should  be  rendered  for  his  every 
act,  and  the  terrors  of  death  got  hold  of  him.  When 
he  thought  of  (rod,  he  trembled.  His  neglected  Bible 
was  taken  down  and  read.  The  storm  without  seem- 
ed to  increase  that  which  was  raging  in  his  soul,  and 


THE     LAST     GAME     OF     CARDS.  109 

Goes  to  his  pastor.  Converted.  Death. 

he  read,  and  wept,  and  prayed,  until  the  morning  light. 
It  was  his  last  night  at  the  card-table. 

He  was  not  a  man  to  conceal  his  true  feelings.  He 
had  been  too  often  at  the  cannon's  mouth  and  in  the 
deadly  breach  to  fear  any  body;  and  the  man  who 
truly  fears  God  fears  nothing  else.  A  little  refreshing 
from  the  Lord  was  at  this  time  enjoyed ;  and  in  the 
morning,  crushed  and  broken  in  spirit,  he  went  to  the 
minister  to  ask  what  he  should  do  to  be  saved.  He 
was  almost  received  as  was  Saul  when  he  went  up 
from  Damascus  to  Jerusalem,  and  "essayed  to  join 
himself  to  the  disciples."  But,  after  telling  his  story, 
it  was  seen  that  the  direct  hand  of  Grod  was  in  the 
matter,  and  that  he  was  a  subject  of  the  convictions 
of  the  Holy  Grhost.  He  was  directed  into  the  way  of 
salvation.  He  was  taught,  in  its  true  and  full  sense, 
that  "  whosoever  believeth  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
shall  be  saved,"  and  that  his  sins  of  crimson  dye,  of 
themselves,  were  no  obstruction  to  his  salvation.  And 
after  a  few  days  spent  as  if  in  the  very  belly  of  hell,  he^ 
found  joy  in  believing.  He  soon  professed  his  faith  in 
Christ,  and  for  thirty  years,  without  turning  to  the 
right  hand  or  to  the  left,  he  followed  Christ  in  his  or- 
dinances and  commandments,  and  went  down  to  the 
grave  without  a  spot  or  blemish  on  his  Christian  char- 
acter. Never  did  I  find  him  in  any  other  frame  than 
rejoicing  in  love  of  Christ — than  resting  only  on  his 
righteousness  for  everlasting  life.  And  as  he  had  often 
met  the  enemies  of  his  country,  so  he  met  the  last  ene- 
my, Death,  without  a  fear,  longing  to  depart,  and  to  be  • 
with  Christ,  which  is  far  better. 


1 10  PARISH     P  E  N  C  I  L  I  N  G  S. 

The  son.  Bitter  reflection.  Various  agencies. 

But  the  question  will  arise,  What  became  of  that 
son,  with  whom,  on  that  stormy  night,  he  played  cards, 
and  had  such  a  disgraceful  fight  ?  He  was  the  bane 
and  the  sorrow  of  his  father's  life.  He  awoke  in  the 
morning  to  curse  his  father,  and  to  pursue  the  evil  of 
his  ways.  The  tears,  the  confessions,  the  entreaties 
of  a  penitent  parent  made  on  him  no  impression.  He 
lived  forgetful  of  Grod,  an  inveterate  drunkard,  a  bur- 
den to  the  community,  and  died  unwept  and  unre- 
garded ;  and  often  have  we  seen  the  father's  soul 
wrung  with  anguish  under  the  bitter  reflection  that 
the  seeds  which  were  bearing  fruit  unto  death  in  the 
heart  of  that  son  might  have  been  sown  there  by  his 
own  hand. 

How  plainly  this  narrative  teaches  the  following 
most  important  lessons : 

1.  That  the  means  of  God  for  the  reclamation  of 
men  are  exhaustless.  One  is  convicted  by  a  sermon, 
another  by  a  tract,  another  by  reading  the  Bible,  an- 
other by  the  faithful  admonition  of  a  pious  parent  or 
friend,  another  by  the  examples  of  the  good  ;  but  here 
is  a  man  who  is  convicted  by  the  very  enormity  of  his 
sins,  (rod  permitted  him  to  follow  out  the  promptings 
of  his  depraved  heart  until  he  became  the  corrupter  of 
his  own  children,  a  depth  of  wickedness  to  which  but 
few  descend,  and  then,  by  his  Spirit,  held  up  that  sin 
before  him  as  an  overwhelming  proof  of  his  awful  de- 
pravity, and  of  his  aggravated  guilt  in  the  sight  of 
(rod !  We  see  the  hand  of  Grod  as  distinctly  revealed 
on  that  stormy  night  in  that  gambling-room  for  the 
conviction  of  that  wicked  father,  as  on  the  plains  of 


THE     LAST     GAME     OP     CARDS.  Ill 


Abounding  mercy.  None  need  despair. 

Damascus  in  the  conviction  of  Saul  of  Tarsus.  And 
in  view  of  the  infinite  variety  of  instrumentality  used 
by  Grod  for  the  conversion  of  men,  may  we  not  well 
exclaim,  in  the  language  of  Paul,  "  Oh  the  depth  of 
the  riches  both  of  the  wisdom  and  knowledge  of  Grod  ! 
How  unsearchable  are  his  judgments,  and  his  ways 
past  finding  out." 

2.  It  teaches  us  that  the  sins  of  men  form  no  bar- 
rier to  their  salvation.  This  was  a  sinner  of  no  me- 
dium character.  Such  a  character  he  could  not  act  ,* 
the  strong  elements  of  which  he  was  formed  forbade 
it.  Hence  he  sinned  with  a  high  hand,  and  without 
any  effort  to  cloak  his  sin.  He  went  on  until  he  could 
corrupt  his  own  children,  and  make  his  son  drunk,  so 
that  he  might  win  his  money  at  the  card-table.  And 
yet  he  found  mercy  as  readily  as  if  he  had  yielded  an 
external  obedience  to  the  moral  law  from  his  youth 
up  !  Grod,  in  his  word,  seems  anxious  to  illustrate  and 
to  reiterate  the  truth,  that  though  our  sins  be  as  scar- 
let, they  shall  be  white  as  snow ;  though  they  be  red 
like  crimson,  they  shall  be  made  even  as  wool.  Let 
the  wicked,  however  wicked,  forsake  their  way,  and 
the  unrighteous,  however  unrighteous,  their  thoughts, 
and  let  them  return  unto  the  Lord,  and  he  will  have 
mercy  on  them,  and  to  our  God,  and  he  will  abun- 
dantly pardon.  And  because  it  is  the  nature  of  sin  to 
beget  forgetfulness  of  the  great  truth,  that  "  whosoever 
believeth  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  saved,"  it 
can  not  be  too  frequently  or  emphatically  repeated  in 
the  hearing  of  all  men.  If  Manasseh,  Saul  of  Tar- 
sus, John  Bunyan,  and  my  aged  friend,  whose  history 


112  PARISH     PKNCII,  INGS. 

Beware  of  sowing  bad  seed.  Mourning  in  heaven. 

1  have  here  briefly  drawn,  found  mercy,  who  need 
despair  ? 

3.  It  teaches  us  to  beware  of  influencing  men  to 
evil  courses.  This  father  was  saved,  by  the  grace  of 
God,  from  his  evil  ways;  the  dominion  of  sin  over 
him  was  broken  by  an  almighty  hand,  but  the  son 
that  he  enticed  away  from  virtuous  courses  never  re- 
turned !  The  cups  from  which  he  taught  him  to  drink 
were  never  abandoned ;  the  profanity  which  he  learned 
in  his  childhood  from  his  father's  lips  knew  no  inter- 
mission ;  the  father  who  taught  the  son  to  despise  re- 
ligion was,  in  turn,  despised  by  that  son  when  he  be- 
came an  humble  follower  of  Jesus  Christ !  An  evil 
course  is  like  an  inclined  plane,  one  end  of  which  is  on 
earth,  and  the  other  in  hell  —  when  men  enter  on  it, 
they  usually  slide  down  to  the  bottom.  *As  he  that 
turns  a  sinner  from  the  error  of  his  ways  saves  a  soul 
from  death  and  hides  a  multitude  of  sins,  so  he  that 
influences  a  fellow-man  to  enter  an  evil  course,  where 
acts  of  sin  grow  into  habits  of  sin,  and  where  habits 
of  sin  give  laws  to  his  being,  destroys  a  soul,  and  be- 
comes a  guilty  cause  of  its  eternal  sinning  and  eternal 
suffering !  This  father  and  son  have  gone  to  the  grave, 
and  have  gone  each  to  his  own  place  ;  and  if  the  spir- 
its of  the  just  made  perfect  in  glory  do  know  the  fruit 
which  the  seeds  sown  by  them  on  earth  have  borne  unto 
death,  and  do  mourn  over  them,  how  will  that  father 
weep  amid  the  bowers  of  bliss  as  he  contemplates  the 
fate  of  his  son,  an  eternal  outcast  from  the  light  of  the 
universe  forever,  and  mainly  through  his  instrument- 
ality !  And  many  parents  are  leading  their  children 


THE     LAST     GAME     OF     CARDS.  113 

Responsibility  of  parents. 

into  vicious  courses,  whose  ends  they  themselves  may 
escape,  but  their  children  never,  who  have  never  put 
the  poisoned  cup  to  their  lips,  and  who  could  never 
spend  an  evening  with  them  at  a  card-table ! 


114  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  court-house.  A  shouter.  A  challenge. 


THE  MORMON  PREACHES. 

SOUTH  of  our  church,  and  within  less  than  one 
hundred  feet  of  it,  stands  our  court-house,  surmounted 
by  Justice  balancing  her  scales  in  the  air,  and  with  a 
flight  of  steps  ascending  to  its  front  door.  As  I  was 
retiring  from  the  church  after  the  close  of  the  service 
on  a  Sabbath  afternoon,  I  heard  a  voice  shouting  from 
the  court-house  steps,  which  were  surrounded  by  quite 
a  crowd  of  people.  On  inquiry,  I  learned  that  the 
shouter  was  a  Mormon  preacher,  who,  in  order  to  se- 
cure hearers,  took  that  central  stand,  and  at  the  hour 
when  my  people  were  dismissed.  Of  course  he  had 
quite  an  audience,  and  of  just  the  sort  of  people  which 
such  a  creature  would  attract.  I  heard  not  a  word  of 
him  through  the  week,  but  on  the  following  Sabbath, 
and  at  the  same  hour,  the  scene  at  the  court-house 
was  repeated. 

Early  in  the  week  after  the  second  Sabbath,  1  re- 
ceived a  letter  giving  me  the  information  that  a  Mor- 
mon missionary  was  in  our  town,  and  that  if  I  were 
willing  to  open  our  "  great  temple"  for  the  purpose,  he 
was  ready  and  anxious  to  debate  with  me  as  to  the 
superior  claims  of  the  "  Latter-day  Saints"  above  those 
of  any  other  people  claiming  to  be  followers  of  Jesus 
Christ.  It  was  just  such  a  letter  as  might  be  expect- 
ed from  such  a  learned  pundit,  and  was  often  made 


THE     MORMON     PREACHER.  115 

His  success.  The  invitation.  Introduction. 

the  subject  of  amusement  to  my  friends  and  visitors. 
Of  course,  it  was  treated  with  the  silence  which  it 
merited. 

I  supposed  that  such  a  man  could  not  find  a  solitary 
follower  in  such  a  community  as  ours,  but  I  have  since 
learned  not  to  over-estimate  the  general  sense  of  any 
community ;  and,  to  my  amazement,  I  soon  heard  that 
he  had  immersed  a  few  persons,  members  of  churches, 
into  the  faith  of  Joe  Smith,  and  that  he  had  taken 
lodgings  in  our  town.  The  whole  thing  was  far  more 
amusing  than  alarming,  as  it  afforded  an  opportunity, 
on  a  very  reduced  scale,  to  see  who  were  the  stable, 
rooted  and  grounded  in  the  truth,  and  who  were  the 
unstable,  blown  about  by  every  wind  of  doctrine.  There 
is  no  absurdity  so  absurd  as  to  repel  all  minds,  and  this 
ignorant  fanatic  had  his  followers. 

Meeting  two  young  ladies  in  the  street,  they  thus 
addressed  me,  with  considerable  emotion  :  "  The  Mor- 
mon preacher  is  in  this  house;  he  has  led  after  him 
some  of  our  people :  will  you  not  go  in  with  us  and 
talk  with  him  ?"  I  readily  accepted  their  invitation, 
and  the  more  readily  as  they  were  not  of  my  people. 
The  family  whose  house  we  entered  was  a  very  plain 
and  simple  one,  poor  but  honest  and  industrious,  and 
earning  their  bread  by  their  daily  toil.  The  man  was 
a  cripple,  and  some  sick  persons  of  the  family  were 
turned  out  of  the  only  comfortable  room  in  the  house 
to  make  way  for  the  Mormon  and  his  wife.  I  was  in- 
troduced to  him,  and  while  he  kept  his  seat  in  the  cor- 
ner, I  made  a  polite  but  cold  recognition  of  the  honor. 
I  introduced  ordinary  topics  to  try  the  strength  of  my 


116  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Biography.  No  love  for  his  trade.  How  converted. 

new  Acquaintance.  When  I  got  him  warmed  into  a 
brisk  conversational  heat,  and  had  taken  his  altitude, 
I  made  nearer  approaches  to  my  object  by  the  line  of 
biography,  when  the  following  conversation  took  place : 

"  "Where,  sir,  are  you  originally  from  ?" 

"  I  was  born  and  grew  up  in  Canada." 

"  Were  your  parents  members  of  any  church  ?" 

"  Yes ;  they  were  Methodists." 

"  Were  you  a  member  of  any  church  before  you  be- 
came a  Mormon  preacher  ?" 

"  Oh  yes  ;  I  was  for  several  years  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  Church,  and  was  a  licensed  exhorter  among 
them." 

"  Were  you  brought  up  to  any  trade  or  profession  ?" 

"  Yes ;  I  am  by  trade  a  shoemaker,  and  have  worked 
at  it  many  years  for  a  living,  but  I  had  no  great- love 
for  the  business." 

"  How  did  you  ever  become  a  Mormon  from  being 
a  Methodist  exhorter  ?  The  change  is  a  very  great 
one,  and  should  not  be  made  save  with  deliberation 
and  for  good  reasons." 

"Well,  I  fell  in  with  a  Mormon  preacher,  and  he 
gave  me  the  Mormon  Bible,  and  I  studied  it  and  stud- 
ied it,  until  I  was  convinced  that  Joseph  Smith  was  a 
true  prophet,  and  that  the  Mormon  Bible  was  a  true 
book ;  and  of  course  I  must  follow  my  conscience  and 
judgment.  This  is  the  way  I  became  a  preacher,  and 
I  think,  if  every  body  would  study  the  matter  as  I  did, 
they  would  believe  as  I  do." 

"  But  Mormonism  is  not  merely  a  new  sect ;  it  is 
really  a  new  dispensation,  is  it  not  ?" 


THE     MORMON     PREACHER.  117 

A  new  dispensation.  Miracles.  A  prompt  test. 

"  Oh  yes,  I  think  it  is." 

"  Think  it  is  !  but  before  you  should  go  round  the 
country  to  preach  its  doctrines,  and  to  invite  people  to 
believe  them,  you  should  be  sure ;  your  faith  should 
be  without  wavering.  Do  you  believe  yours  to  be  a 
new  dispensation  or  not  ?" 

"  Oh  yes,  yes ;  I  believe  it  is." 

"  Well,  then,  the  dispensation  of  the  Law,  as  given 
by  Moses,  was  introduced  by  miracles,  and  so  was  the 
dispensation  of  the  Grospel  by  Jesus  Christ.  These 
miracles  were  the  divine  testimony  to  the  truth  of  the 
dispensations  introduced  ;  for  that  purpose  they  were 
wrought  and  appealed  to.  Now,  if  Mormonism  is  a 
new  dispensation,  designed  to  supplant  that  of  Jesus 
Christ,  it  must  be  established  by  miracles.  We  can 
receive  it  on  no  less  testimony  than  that  of  Grod,  and 
(rod  gives  his  testimony  by  miracles.  Do  your  proph- 
ets or  ministers  work  any  ?" 

"  Oh  yes,  constantly ;  and  some  of  our  brethren  are 
great  at  them,"  he  replied,  without  faltering  or  a 
blush. 

"  Well,  have  you  ever  worked  any,  and  of  what 
kind?" 

"  Oh  yes,  several ;  I  have  healed  the  sick,  and  cured 
the  infirm." 

"  Very  well,  you  are  just  the  man  we  want  here,  as 
we  have  a  good  many  of  both  classes  ;  and  here  is  poor 

Mr. ,  who  has  been  without  the  use  of  his  limbs 

for  many  years ;  you  can  try  your  hand  on  him.  If 
you  can  cure  him  now,  so  that  he  can  run  without  his 
sticks,  we  will  all  believe  in  you." 


118  PARISH    PENCILINGS. 

Evasion.  Rather  subdued.  Gift  of  tongues. 

He  was  silent  for  a  moment.  He  looked  at  the 
cripple  before  him,  and  feeling  that  he  was  rather  in 
a  tight  place,  he  replied, 

"  But  he  is  not  a  believer." 

"  Well,  but  the  subjects  of  miraculous  power  are 
not  confined  to  believers,  for  Christ  and  his  apostles 
wrought  miraculous  cures  on  many  that  never  believ- 
ed; otherwise  we  must  believe  first,  and  have  the 
testimony  afterward." 

He  looked  again  upon  the  infirm  man,  and  thinking 
that  he  was  a  hard  case,  and  feeling  that  he  himself 
was  in  a  very  tight  place,  he  replied, 

"  We  can  work  cures  only  on  believers." 

This  he  uttered  with  rather  a  feeble  and  crestfallen 
tone,  and  obviously  feeling  that  it  was  nearly  all  over 
with  him.  As  if  to  relieve  him  a  little  from  his  di- 
lemma, but  for  the  purpose  of  extending  my  basis  for 
future  action,  I  said, 

"  But  there  may  be  other  miracles  at  which  you  are 
more  expert  than  those  of  curing  cripples.  Are  there 
any  others  you  can  work  ?" 

After  pausing  for  some  moments,  he  replied, 

"  I  only  cures  the  sick  when  they  believe ;  but  my 
wife,  she  has  the  gift  of  tongues ;  I  have  heard  her 
many  a  time." 

This  was  a  little  too  much,  to  shift  the  burden  of 
proof  upon  the  weaker  vessel,  who  was  not  present, 
and  which  I  resolved  not  to  permit. 

"  It  is  no  new  thing  for  ladies  to  talk  with  tongues, 
as  the  world  knows ;  but  with  what  other  than  her  own 
tongue  does  your  wife  1  *lk  ?" 


THE     MORMON     PREACHER.  119 

A  dead  pause.  Impudence.  Patience  exhausted. 

"  Surely  I  don't  know ;  I  can't  interpret,  as  I  am 
not  a  learned  man ;  but  I  have  heard  her  a  great  many 
times." 

"Did  she  ever  speak  in  an  unknown  tongue  that 
any  tody  else  could  interpret  ?  Can  she  speak  French 
to  the  French,  German  to  the  German,  Irish  to  the 
Irish  ?" 

"  Not  as  I  know  on." 

"  If,  then,  you  can  not  understand  her,  and  if  nobody 
else  can  understand  her,  and  if  she  can  not  talk  so  that 
any  body  can  understand  her,  save  in  her  own  native 
English,  how  do  you  know — how  can  any  body  know 
that  she  has  the  miraculous  gift  of  tongues  ?" 

He  was  brought  again  to  a  dead  pause ;  but,  sum- 
moning his  impudence  to  his  assistance,  he  said, 

"  But  I  know  she  can  speak  with  miraculous 
tongues,  for  I  have  very  often  heard  her,  and  so  have 
others." 

Having  thus  driven  him  to  the  point  of  exhaustion, 
I  again  turned  the  subject,  and  asked  him, 

"  How  do  you  make  a  living  ?" 

"  I  depend  upon  the  Lord  for  my  daily  bread.  He 
takes  care  of  me  ;  and  when  I  have  no  money  to  pay 
my  way,  kind  friends  like  these  supply  my  wants." 

Forbearance  was  no  longer  a  virtue.  He  was  ob- 
viously a  lazy  man  that  hated  work,  and  a  low,  vul- 
gar impostor,  that  took  up  with  Mormonism  to  make 
a  living,  after,  probably,  he  had  been  cast  out  of  the 
Methodist  Church  for  his  sins.  And  there  he  had  been 
for  some  weeks  living  upon  this  poor  family,  because 
one  of  its  female  members  had  become  his  follower, 


120  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

A  charge  home.  His  (light. 

and  occupying  a  room  from  which  the  sick  were  ex- 
cluded to  make  room  for  him  and  his  wife  of  many 
tongues.  Fully  believing  all  this,  I  thus  addressed 
him: 

"  My  friend,  I  have  no  more  to  say  to  you.  You 
are  a  lazy,  indolent  man — too  lazy  to  make  a  lawful 
living  for  yourself  and  wife.  I  advise  you  to  return  to 
the  bench  and  to  the  last.  You  are  a  wicked  man ; 
you  have  laid  aside  the  religion  of  God,  and  turned 
fanatic.  You  are  pretending  to  powers  which  you 
can  not  exercise,  and  are  thus  daily  guilty  of  the  sin 
of  blasphemy.  You  are  deceiving  people  under  a 
Mormon  garb,  which  you  simply  put  on  as  a  cloak  for 
your  hypocrisy ;  and  in  this  way  you  are  living  upon 
poor  people  who  have  enough  to  do  to  support  them- 
selves. My  advice  to  you  is  to  leave  the  town  imme- 
diately, or  I  will  send  the  constable  after  you  as  an 
impostor,  living  upon  these  poor  people  under  false  pre- 
tenses. You  are  a  wicked  man,  for  whom  there  is  no 
hope,  save  in  repentance  for  your  sins  and  faith  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

He  hugged  the  corner  while,  with  earnestness  mix- 
ed with  concealed  mirth,  I  thus  denounced  him.  He 
was  overwhelmed ;  he  made  no  attempt  to  reply.  I 
left  the  house.  He  was  soon  away,  with  the  fear  of 
the  constable  behind  him.  I  have  never  heard  of  him 
since.  For  aught  I  know,  he  may  be  one  of  the  pillars 
of  the  infernal  system  of  which  Joe  Smith  was  the 
head,  and  Brigham  Young  is  the  tail. 


CHRIST     NEVER     FORGOTTEN.  121 

Memory.  Mysteries.  Theories. 


CHRIST  NEVER  FORGOTTEN. 

THE  theories  of  philosophers  as  to  memory  are  va- 
rious, and  often  in  conflict.  While,  like  hearing  or 
seeing,  it  is  an  original  power  bestowed  by  Grod,  there 
are  many  things  in  reference  to  it  very  mysterious  to  us. 
It  may  be  increased  to  almost  any  extent.  There  is  on 
record  an  account  of  a  man  who,  after  reading  a  news- 
paper, could  repeat  all  its  contents ;  and  it  is  said  that 
Cyrus  could  call  all  the  soldiers  of  his  immense  army 
by  name.  And  it  may  be  impaired  to  almost  any  ex- 
tent, and  in  a  great  variety  of  ways — by  diseases,  in- 
juries, fright,  and  old  age.  William  Tennant  forgot 
every  thing  he  had  learned,  even  to  the  letters  of  the 
alphabet,  by  an  attack  of  fever  ;  and  Artemidorus  was 
so  terrified  by  a  crocodile  as  to  forget  all  he  ever  knew. 
Nor  is  there  any  thing  more  common  in  old  people 
than  a  forgetfulness  of  passing  events,  and  a  vivid 
memory  of  the  events  and  occurrences  of  their  youth. 
Aristotle  imputes  the  shortness  of  the  memory  of  chil- 
dren to  the  softness  of  the  brain,  which  will  not  hold 
impressions ;  and  that  of  the  aged  to  the  hardness  of 
the  brain,  which  refuses  to  receive  deep  impressions. 
The  old  philosophers  talked  of  pictures  being  made 
upon  the  brain,  and  of  the  retention  of  these  pictures 
constituting  memory,  so  that  the  memory  was  a  great 
picture-gallery  ;  and  as  the  brain  possessed  the  power 

F 


122  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Impression  longest  retained.  Facts. 

of  retaining  those  pictures,  persons  had  a  good  or  bad 
memory. 

I  have  often  felt  curious  to  know,  in  the  case  of  a 
failing  memory  by  reason  of  age,  what  were  the  last 
impressions  retained.  Dr.  Rush  tells  of  a  woman  who 
forgot  her  own  name,  by  reason  of  the  grief  induced 
by  the  loss  of  her  husband  and  several  children.  I 
have  been  told  of  a  merchant  in  New  York  who  had 
to  inquire  of  those  around  him,  at  the  window  of  the 
post-office,  what  his  name  was,  before  he  could  ask  for 
his  letters ;  and  native-born  Germans,  who  seemed  to 
have  lost  the  use  of  their  own  language  by  a  residence 
of  sixty  years  in  America,  have  been  known,  in  old  age, 
to  forget  all  their  English,  and  to  talk  and  pray  only  in 
their  native  tongue.  Facts  like  these,  to  any  amount, 
might  be  stated.  I  was  once  collecting  from  the  old- 
est people  facts  and  incidents  for  some  notes  as  to  the 
history  of  the  town  of  my  residence,  and  I  was  amazed 
to  find  with  what  distinctness  and  accuracy  they  could 
give  narrations  as  to  occurrences  during  the  war  of  the 
Revolution,  when  stirring  incidents  of  a  few  years  pre- 
vious were  entirely  forgotten  ;  and  all  this  suggested 
the  inquiry  as  to  the  impressions  longest  retained  by 
the  mind  whose  memory  is  weakened  simply  by  the 
enfeebling  process  of  increasing  years. 

On  my  removal  to  my  present  charge,  I  found 
among  my  people  an  aged  woman  of  peculiar  aspect : 
aged,  tall,  straight  as  an  arrow,  peculiar  in  her  dress, 
of  firm  step,  with  a  strongly-marked  countenance,  she 
impressed  everybody  at  first  sight.  She  walked  with 
a  cane,  and  so  straightforward  that  every  body  con- 


CHRIST. NEVER     FORGOTTEN.  123 

An  old  lady.  Peculiarities.  Memory. 

ceded  to  her  the  right  of  way.  She  went  to  the  end 
of  her  seat  in  the  church,  whoever  occupied  its  front, 
and  she  sat  upright  through  the  longest  service,  hear- 
ing and  praying  over  all  that  was  said.  Her  mental 
character  was  like  her  external  appearance,  pecu- 
liar. Her  opinions  were  defined  and  firm,  and  were 
given  without  faltering ;  her  likes  and  dislikes  she 
never  concealed.  Although  possessing  considerable 
property,  she  lived  alone  until  infirmity  rendered  a 
nurse  necessary.  She  survived  two  husbands,  all  her 
children,  all  her  immediate  relations,  and  was  like 
an  old  tree  standing  alone  in  the  field  while  all  its 
former  associates  had  fallen  before  the  axe  of  the 
woodman. 

She  was  the  daughter  of  a  minister  who  figured 
somewhat  as  a  patriot  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution, 
and  was  rooted  and  grounded  in  the  truth.  Her  edu- 
cation was  above  the  ordinary  standard  for  her  time, 
and  served  to  give  emphasis  to  her  character.  She 
was  born  again  during  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  and 
professed  her  faith  in  Christ  when  the  smoke  of  our 
battle-fields  was  passing  away  before  the  genius  of 
Peace ;  and  beyond  any  aged  person  I  ever  knew,  her 
memory  was  retentive  and  exact  as  to  the  men,  and 
scenes,  and  events  of  those  stormy  times.  She  could 
describe  the  features  and  persons  of  men,  their  dress, 
the  very  color  of  their  hair ;  she  could  give  the  texts 
of  sermons  she  had  heard  seventy  years  before,  and 
quote  sentences  from  them ;  and  as  her  social  position 
was  such  as  to  bring  her  into  the  society  of  the  im- 
portant men  of  her  youth,  she  was  full  of  anecdote  as 


124  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Memory  fails.  A  blank.  Christ  remembered. 

to  nearly  all  the  men  that  then  guided  the  destinies  of 
her  native  state. 

But  under  the  pressure  of  increasing  years,  her 
memory  began  rapidly  to  fail.  In  wandering  over  her 
rooms  at  midnight,  with  a  candle,  she  set  fire  to  her 
house,  and  was  but  just  rescued  from  the  flames.  She 
was  compelled  to  remove  to  another  house,  and  to  an- 
other part  of  the  town,  and  thenceforward  there  seemed 
to  be  an  almost  entire  failure  of  memory.  Often  I 
would  sit  by  her  side,  and  naming  her  first  and  second 
husband,  I  would  ask  her  if  she  remembered  any  thing 
in  reference  to  them.  The  reply  was,  No.  She  had 
one  son,  on  whose  memory  and  picture  she  doted,  and 
whose  grave  she  was  in  the  habit  of  visiting,  and  who 
was  often  the  subject  of  most  exciting  conversation ; 
but  she  had  no  recollection  of  him.  Her  former  pas- 
tor she  most  tenderly  loved,  but  he  was  forgotten.  She 
would  look  into  my  face,  and  ask,  "  Who  are  you,  my 
child  ?"  I  spoke  of  her  father  and  mother,  of  her 
brothers  and  sisters,  but  not  a  trace  of  them  remained. 
After  trying  her  in  these  ways  until  satisfied  that  on 
all  such  subjects  her  mind  was  an  entire  blank,  I 
would  ask  her,  "  Do  you  remember  any  thing  about 
Jesus  Christ  ?"  and  she  would  at  once  assume  an  erect 
position,  and  her  eye  would  kindle  with  its  accustomed 
fire,  and,  seizing  my  hand,  she  would  say,  with  her 
wonted  energy,  "  Can  I,  a  poor  sinner,  ever  forget  the 
dear  Savior  that  has  died  for  me  ?"  And  then  she 
would  talk  with  interest  for  minutes  together,  and  in 
a  most  pious  and  earnest  strain,  about  her  dear  Savior. 
When  thus  excited,  I  would  commence  a  text  of 


CHRIST    NEVER    FORGOTTEN.  125 

Text  repeated.  Test  often  applied.  Another  case. 

Scripture,  and  she  would  conclude  it  with  perfect  ac- 
curacy, commencing  where  I  ceased.  I  would  say, 
"  For  we  know  that  if  our  earthly  house  of  this  taber- 
nacle were  dissolved — "  there  I  would  stop,  and  she 
would  add,  "We  have  a  building  of  Grod,  a  house 
not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens."  I 
would  say,  "  There  is  therefore  now  no  condemna- 
nation — "  she  would  add,  "  To  them  who  are  in 
Christ  Jesus,  who  walk  not  after  the  flesh,  but  after 
the  Spirit."  Often  did  I  try  her  in  this  way,  and 
neVer  did  I  find  her  memory  in  such  a  state  of  torpor 
as  to  forget  Christ.  But  as  soon  as  the  excitement 
caused  by  the  name  of  Christ  passed  away,  she  would 
relapse  into  her  accustomed  state  of  forgetfulness,  in 
which  she  usually  occupied  herself  in  picking  out  the 
threads,  one  after  the  other,  from  an  old  piece  of  cloth. 
Thus  this  once  heroic  woman  would  occupy  herself 
for  hours  together.  As  it  was  the  first  example  of  the 
kind  I  had  ever  witnessed,  it  greatly  interested  me ; 
and  as  she  lived  in  this  state  for  three  or  four  years, 
the  experiment  was  very  often  repeated,  and  with  pre- 
cisely the  same  results. 

Subsequent  to  the  death  of  this  excellent  woman,  a 
similar  case  came  under  my  notice,  and  to  which  I 
have  already  referred  in  these  Pencilings.  Family  af- 
flictions, repeated  bereavements,  and  severe  and  oft- 
repeated  attacks  of  sickness,  weakened  her  memory, 
until  her  husband,  her  living  and  deceased  children, 
were  all  forgotten — until  all  traces  of  the  past  seemed 
erased  from  her  mind.  Yet  the  moment  the  name  of 
Jesus  was  mentioned,  she  woke  up  as  from  a  dream, 


126  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

An  aged  man.  Repeating  the  Catei-liixm. 

and  after  giving  utterance  to  the  feelings  of  her  pious 
soul,  she  would  relapse  again  into  her  state  of  forget- 
fulness,  from  which  nothing  could  again  rouse  her  but 
the  name  of  Jesus. 

I  met  with  an  aged  man  during  one  of  my  family 
visitations  whose  case  was  one  of  deep  interest.  He 
had  passed  his  ninetieth  year,  was  exceedingly  frail, 
and  his  memory  greatly  impaired.  He  was  taught 
the  Shorter  Catechism  in  his  youth  by  a  pious  mother, 
and  although  he  had  left  the  Church  of  his  fathers  for 
another  branch  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  he  instructed 
his  own  family  in  that  excellent  form  of  sound  words. 
His  children  had  all  passed  away,  as  did  nearly  all  rec- 
ollection of  them.  The  time  was  upon  him  when  the 
grasshopper  was  a  burden,  and  when  he  would  wake 
up  at  the  sound  of  the  bird ;  and  his  sleepless  nights 
he  nearly  always  spent  in  asking  and  answering,  in  an 
audible  voice,  the  questions  of  the  Shorter  Catechism  ; 
and  he  would  go  over  and  over  it,  from  the  beginning 
to  the  end,  without  missing  a  question,  and  with  a 
perfect  verbal  accuracy.  And  yet  he  could  not  an- 
swer any  one  question  of  it  if  the  thread  was  broken, 
or  if  it  were  asked  by  another. 

These  instances,  and  many  like  them  of  which  I 
have  heard,  have  induced  me  to  conclude  that  the  im- 
pressions longest  retained  by  a  memory  failing  under 
the  pressure  of  old  age  are  those  of  a  religious  charac- 
ter. In  the  instances  narrated,  when  parents,  hus- 
bands, wives,  children,  friends,  were  all  forgotten,  the 
name  of  Christ,  in  all  his  preciousness  as  a  Sav- 
ior, was  remembered,  and  texts  of  Scripture  fragrant 


CHRIST     NEVER     FORGOTTEN.  127 

Religious  impressions  deepest.  Why  ?  Prayer. 

with  his  name,  and  formal  statements  of  Christian 
doctrine,  were  repeated  as  if  with  unimpaired  recollec- 
tion. 

May  we  account  for  these  statements  on  the  ground 
that  religious  truths  are  those  which  most  engage  the 
powers  of  the  mind  and  the  affections  of  the  heart,  and 
thus  most  deeply  impress  both  ?  Or  may  we  account 
for  them  on  the  ground  that  they  absorb  more  atten- 
tion, and  for  a  longer  time,  than  any  other  truths  or 
tilings  with  which  we  have  to  do?  Or  is  it  so  that 
the  affections  of  the  renewed  heart  cling  so  to  Christ, 
that  when  these  affections  are  excited,  they  wake  all 
the  memories  of  his  person,  work,  and  love  ?  Or  is  it 
so  that,  amid  the  sorrowful  decays  of  the  powers  of  the 
mind,  the  Holy  Ghost  is  carrying  on  the  great  work  of 
sanctifying  the  soul  through  the  influence  of  the  truth  ? 
But,  whatever  may  be  the  true  solution  of  the  above 
statements,  one  thing  is  obvious,  that  when  the  minds 
of  the  truly  pious  give  out  all  impressions  and  recol- 
lections of  past  scenes  and  events,  and  of  the  dearest 
and  nearest  friends,  even  then  Christ  is  in  the  heart 
the  hope  of  glory. 

Oh,  when  flesh,  and  strength,  and  mind,  and  mem- 
ory all  fail  us,  may  Christ  be  the  strength  of  our  heart 
and  our  portion  forever ! 


123  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Thankfulness  enjoined.  The  truly  thankful  few. 


THANKFULNESS. 

THANKFULNESS  is  a  Christian  virtue  often  commend- 
ed, and  yet  but  too  little  cultivated ;  and  how  frequent-* 
ly,  when  thanksgiving  is  on  our  lips,  is  corroding  dis- 
satisfaction at  the  heart !  And  the  fact  that  G-od  so 
frequently  enjoins  a  spirit  of  thankfulness,  and  the  duty 
of  thanksgiving,  is  a  proof  of  his  good- will  toward  us, 
and  of  his  desire  for  our  happiness ;  for  while  prayer 
reminds  us  of  our  wants  and  imperfections,  and  while 
confession  reminds  us  of  our  sins  and  ill  deserts,  and 
while  repentance  brings  up  in  review  our  violations  of 
the  divine  law  in  all  their  criminality,  thanksgiving 
only  exercises  the  memory  on  blessings  received,  and 
gives  a  delightful  exercise  to  the  affections  in  view  of 
them.  The  truly  thankful  man  is  the  only  truly  hap- 
py man ;  and  while  it  is  difficult  to  eradicate  from  hu- 
man nature  a  sense  of  gratitude  for  benefits  received, 
while  even  the  brute  creation,  the  ass,  the  ox,  the  dog, 
can  manifest  gratitude,  yet  none  but  they  who  have 
tasted  that  the  Lord  is  good  can  truly  thank  the  Lord 
for  his  goodness,  or  can  learn  in  whatsoever  state  they 
are  therewith  to  be  content.  In  the  course  of  a  min- 
istry now  somewhat  protracted,  I  have  met  with  many, 
very  many  fretful  disciples,  who  were  evermore  com- 
plaining that  all  things  were  against  them,  and  with 
but  comparatively  few  who  could  rejoice  in  the  cloudy 


THANKFULNESS.  129 

A  high  attainment.  A  family.  An  afflicted  saint. 

and  dark  day  equally  as  in  the  day  of  prosperous  sun- 
shine. It  is  a  high  Christian  attainment,  indeed,  to 
feel  that  all  things  are  working  together  for  our  good, 
when  to  the  eye  of  sense  the  very  stars  in  their  courses 
seem  to  fight  against  us.  Yet  one  such  instance  I  did 
find,  to  the  praise  of  the  grace  of  God. 

I  called  on  a  family  during  a  spiritual  refreshing 
with  which  I  had  but  little  previous  acquaintance. 
The  father  was  intemperate,  and  a  rampant  Univer- 
salist,  and  was  far  more  confident  of  preparation  for 
heaven  than  ever  was  Paul.  He  was,  on  the  whole, 
the  most  full-blown  specimen  of  that  enormous  error 
that  I  had  met.  He  was  profane,  sharp  in  intellect, 
and  confident  of  heaven.  The  mother  was  subdued, 
gentle  in  her  tones,  alive  to  divine  truth,  and  deeply 
serious,  but  yet  reluctant  to  give  full  expression  to  her 
feelings  in  the  presence  of  her  husband.  Some  of  the 
children  were  deeply -convicted  inquirers  as  to  the  way 
to  be  saved.  I  soon  repeated  my  visit ;  and  the  result 
was,  that  that  mother,  with  several  members  of  the 
family,  professed  Christ  on  the  same  day,  and  took  their 
seats  together  at  the  table  of  the  Lord. 

I  have  met  with  but  few  more  deeply  afflicted  than 
was  that  excellent  woman.  Weekly,  often  daily,  had 
she  to  bear  the  presence  of  a  drunken  Universalist  hus- 
band. She  was  afflicted  with  the  rheumatism  to  a 
degree  which  distorted  her  joints,  and  sent  excruciating 
pain  through  her  system,  and  rendered  her  often  unable 
to  move.  Her  husband  died  of  a  protracted  sickness, 
which  rendered  necessary  all  the  attention  she  could 
render ;  and  it  was  rendered,  amid  pain,  without  a 

F2 


130  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Severe  trials.  Comforted.  The  reply. 

murmur.  Two  children  died,  one  after  the  other,  with 
consumption,  and  in  the  full  maturity  of  their  years ; 
she  attended  them,  as  she  could,  cheerfully  and  con- 
stantly ;  and,  as  they  died  in  hope,  she  committed  them 
to  the  grave  without  a  murmur.  A  son,  one  of  the 
props  of  her  declining  years,  died  in  the  same  way. 
After  covering  his  remains  under  the  clods  of  the  val- 
ley, I  called  to  comfort  her  as  her  pastor.  But  the 
Comforter  abode  with  her  continually ;  and  while  she 
received  me  with  cheerful  though  sorrowful  greetings, 
she  needed  none  of  my  aid  to  lead  her  to  the  source  of 
all  comfort.  Sitting  down  by  her  side,  we  held  in  sub- 
stance the  following  conversation : 

"  Well,  my  friend,  the  Master  seems  to  be  wringing 
out  to  you  a  full  cup  of  affliction." 

"  He  is  only  fulfilling  his  promises  to  me,"  was  the 
reply. 

"  "What  promises  ?"  I  asked. 

"  Whom  the  Lord  loveth  he  chasteneth,"  was  the 
answer ;  and  she  repeated  the  entire  passage  with  an 
emphasis  and  earnestness  which  showed  that  she  fully 
understood  and  applied  it. 

"  But  does  it  not  sometimes  seem  as  if  you  were  re- 
ceiving more  than  your  share  of  affliction  hi  this  life  ?" 
I  asked.  The  reply  made  on  me  a  lasting  impression. 

"  God  knows  me,"  she  said.  "  He  knows  all  I  need 
to  make  me  a  partaker  of  his  holiness.  He  will  not 
cause  me  to  suffer  a  pang  beyond  what  is  needful. 
You  speak  of  my  afflictions ;  why,  they  are  very  few ; 
when  I  commence  counting  them,  I  get  through  in  a 
few  minutes ;  but  when  I  strive  to  reckon  up  my  mer- 


THANKFULNESS.  131 

Counting  up  mercies.  Rebuked.  Rich  in  faith. 

cies,  I  know  not  where  to  begin  or  end ;  I  can  never 
get  through.  Many  spend  their  time  in  going  over  and 
over  their  few  afflictions ;  that  does  me  no  good ;  I 
strive  to  count  up  my  mercies,  and  they  make  me  feel 
so  thankful !"  And  as  she  uttered  this  last  sentence, 
her  bent  form  assumed  an  almost  erect  position,  and 
her  whole  countenance,  withered  and  sunken  as  it  was, 
and  furrowed  by  many  a  sorrow,  was  illumined ;  it 
shone  as  if  a  flood  of  heavenly  light  had  suddenly  fall- 
en upon  it.  I  was  rebuked  and  instructed. 

As  she  lingered  to  nearly  her  fourscore  years,  amid 
manifold  infirmities,  I  was  her  frequent  visitor ;  for 
months  together,  a  weekly  one.  Never  did  I  find  her 
complaining — never  in  any  other  than  a  thankful  frame. 
If  by  any  allusion  I  called  her  attention  to  her  afflic- 
tions, she  said  just  enough  to  show  that  she  felt  them 
all  keenly  and  deeply,  and  then  turned  to  her  mani- 
fold and  undeserved  mercies,  upon  which  she  dwelt 
with  a  feeling,  at  times,  approaching  almost  to  rapture. 
Often  would  she  adopt  the  language  of  the  103d  Psalm 
as  her  own,  and  exclaim,  "  Bless  the  Lord,  0  my  soul, 
and  forget  not  all  his  benefits."  Although  afflicted  far 
beyond  the  ordinary  lot  of  men,  and  poor  as  to  this 
world,  she  was  rich  in  faith,  and  was  the  most  thank- 
ful Christian  I  have  ever  known. 

Toward  the  close  of  her  life,  her  mind  gave  way  and 
her  memory  greatly  failed.  It  was  difficult,  at  times, 
to  rouse  her  to  the  point  of  an  interesting  conversation. 
For  the  purpose  of  trying  her  temper  and  spirit  of  soul, 
I  would  ask  her  about  some  of  her  dear  friends ;  but 
they  had  fallen  from  her  memory.  I  would  ask  her  as 


132  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Memory  failed.  Progress.  Complainings. 

to  some  of  the  scenes  of  trial  through  which  she  had 
passed,  and  under  my  own  eye,  but  they  left  no  trace 
behind.  I  once  asked  her  in  reference  to  her  husband 
and  children,  but  there  was  no  remembrance  of  them. 
I  then  asked  her  if  she  knew  who  was  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  and  she  started  as  one  awaking  from  a  dream, 
and  went  off  in  a  eulogy  upon  him  as  her  Savior,  her 
Redeemer,  who  had  died  upon  the  cross  for  her ;  and 
after  giving  utterance  to  her  thankfulness  for  all  his 
mercies,  she  relapsed  again  into  a  state  of  forgetfulness  ; 
and  from  the  state  of  mental  torpor  into  which  she  had 
fallen,  nothing  could  so  arouse  her  as  the  name  of  Je- 
sus. Her  entire  religious  life  was  one  of  endurance, 
strong  confidence,  and  unceasing  thankfulness.  Al- 
though in  humble  life,  she  was  one  of  the  most  instruct- 
ive Christians  I  have  ever  known.  Her  intellect  was 
bright,  but  not  enlarged  by  education  ;  her  circle  was 
narrow,  and  with  but  little  in  it  to  excite  to  high  spir- 
itual aspirations;  she  came  into  the  Church  late  in 
life,  when  the  seeds  of  grace  should  have  been  ripening 
instead  of  being  in  the  blade  ;  and  yet  she  had,  to  a  re- 
markable degree,  the  secret  of  the  Lord — her  life  was 
hid  with  Christ  in  Grod.  Praise  and  thankfulness  were 
ever  on  her  lips. 

How  varied  the  lessons  of  instruction  contained  in 
this  narrative ! 

How  much  more  disposed  we  are  to  complain  under 
the  discipline  of  our  heavenly  Father  than  to  rejoice  in 
the  far  more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of  glory  for 
which  it  is  all  designed  to  prepare  us !  And  we  fret 
and  complain  more  over  the  withdrawal  of  one  com- 


THANKFULNESS.  133 

Complaining  amid  mercies.  Cultivate  thankfulness. 

fort,  than  we  rejoice  over  the  continuance  of  a  thousand 
mercies.  How  this  child  of  God,  rejoicing  amid  priva- 
tions, should  rebuke  those  who  are  evermore  complain- 
ing amid  abounding  comforts !  Alas !  how  many 
there  are  who  give  convincing  evidence  that  they  do 
love  God,  and  yet  who  seem  ever  to  say  by  their  con- 
duct that  he  is  a  hard  master !  The  precious  ointment 
of  grace  is  in  the  soul,  but  it  is  spoiled  by  the  dead  fly 
of  a  fretful  temper ;  the  true  light  is  in  the  mind,  but 
it  is  veiled  by  a  complaining  spirit ;  and  when  the  Lord 
is  leading  them  to  higher  degrees  of  sanctification  by 
ways  that  they  know  not,  they  are  evermore  saying, 
"  All  these  things  are  against  me."  This  can  not  be 
otherwise  regarded  than  as  a  great  blemish  upon  Chris- 
tian character,  and  is  emphatically  reproved  by  the 
foregoing  portraiture  of  a  dear  child  of  Grod,  whose 
Christian  life  was  one  of  deep  personal  and  relative 
afflictions.  Blessed  are  they  who  have  learned  in 
whatsoever  state  they  are  therewith  to  be  content. 

It  teaches  all  to  cultivate  a  thankful  spirit.  Why 
should  a  living  man  complain  ?  And  where  life  is 
continued,  it  is  usually  amid  mercies  far  surpassing  all 
earthly  afflictions.  The  whole  Christian  economy  is 
designed  to  call  forth  abounding  thanksgiving  ;  and  a 
Christian  is  never  so  truly  what  his  Master  would  have 
him  to  be,  nor  so  like  what  he  will  be  hereafter,  as 
when,  by  daily  thanksgiving,  he  is  rendering  to  the 
Lord  according  to  the  mercies  he  is  daily  receiving. 

There  is,  perhaps,  no  better  way  of  cultivating  a 
thankful  spirit  than  by  selecting  some  one  eminent  for 
its  manifestation,  and  then  seeking  to  know  the  mer- 


134  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

David.  Paul.  Duty  of  all  Christians. 


cies  which  caused  his  thanksgivings  to  abound.  Such 
a  one  was  David:  so  full  was  his  heart,  that  the  least 
mercy  caused  it  to  overflow ;  so  ingenious  was  he,  that 
he  drew  a  cause  of  thanksgiving  from  the  most  adverse 
providences  of  his  life.  Nothing  came  amiss  to  him. 
"  Like  the  fire  which  transmutes  rotten  wood  and 
dingy  coal  to  light  and  flame,"  the  fire  of  David's  devo- 
tion turned  his  hardships  into  blessings,  and  his  sorrows 
into  songs  of  thanksgiving.  Such  a  one  was  Paul. 
Feeling  that  he  had  all  things  in  Christ,  he  suffered  all 
things  cheerfully,  joyfully  for  his  sake,  looking  forward 
to  the  recompense  of  reward.  His  life  was  a  continued 
thank-offering  to  (rod  for  his  abounding  mercies.  No 
sufferings,  persecutions,  afflictions,  ever  drew  a  com- 
plaint from  his  lips. 

And  like  unto  these  in  kind,  if  not  in  degree,  was 
the  life  of  the  child  of  God  here  narrated.  Christ  was 
hers,  and  she  clung  to  him  by  a  faith  which  rarely 
wavered;  and,  like  Paul,  she  knew  that  all  things 
were  hers ;  and,  with  the  ingenuity  of  David,  she  drew 
a  cause  of  thanksgiving  from  her  deepest  afflictions. 
And  why  should  not  all  the  children  of  God  be  like 
her  ?  "Why  should  not  every  believer  be  in  a  constant 
frame  of  mind  and  heart  which  will  induce  them  daily 
to  say, 

"  When  all  thy  mercies,  0  my  God, 

My  rising  soul  surveys, 
Transported  with  the  view,  I'm  lost 
In  wonder,  love,  and  praise  1" 


THE     REV.    AS  HEEL     GREEN,    D.  D.  135 


Two  characters.  To  be  known  in  both. 


THE  REV.  ASHBEL  GR'EEN,  D.D." 

REVEREND  AND  DEAR  SIR, — You  ask  from  me  myi 
reminiscences  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Green,  and  my  views  as 
to  his  general  character  as  a  minister  and  as  a  literary 
man  ;  and  while  feeling  that  there  are  many  more 
competent  for  the  task,  because  of  their  long  and  fa- 
miliar acquaintance  with  this  great  and  good  man,  I 
hesitate  not  to  comply  with  your  request.  I  shall  ar- 
range my  views  of  his  character  under  a  few  heads, 
and  bring  in  my  recollections  of  him  by  way  of  illus- 
trating them. 

1.  He  was  a  man  pre-eminently  of  two  characters, 
public  and  private ;  and  to  form  a  right  estimate  of 
him,  he  must  be  known  in  both.  To  those  who  only 
knew  him  as  a  public  man,  he  was  stern,  unyielding, 
dictatorial,  and  repulsive ;  to  those  who  knew  him  both 
in  public  and  in  private,  he  was  mild,  pliable,  and  pe- 
culiarly attractive.  Hence,  by  one  class  he  was  re- 
spected, but  disliked ;  while  by  another  he  was  un- 
commonly beloved,  and  regarded  as  an  oracle. 

Although  I  had  heard  much  of  him  from  my  boy- 
hood, and  had  read  some  of  his  writings,  I  never  saw 
him  until  1826  ;  and  the  sight  of  him,  at  that  time, 
would  induce  any  young  man  to  resolve  to  keep  at  a 
respectful  distance.  His  form  was  full  and  command- 
ing ;  his  appearance  was  stern  ;  his  eye,  gleaming 

*  Written  for  a.  forthcoming  work  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Sprague. 


136  PARISH     V  E  N  C  I  L,  I  N  G  S. 

First  acquaintance.  Change  of  feeling.  Erroneous  views  of  him. 

through  shaggy  eyebrows,  was  penetrating ;  his  step 
was  firm,  and  from  his  cane  to  his  wig  there  was  some- 
thing, which,  to  say  the  least,  was  more  repulsive  than 
attractive  to  a  youth ;  and  with  this  conclusion  agreed 
many  of  the  anecdotes  which  I  had  heard  of  him  while 
President  of  Nassau  Hall.  My  acquaintance  with  him 
commenced  in  1827,  and  in  this  wise :  Visiting  Phil- 
adelphia as  the  agent  of  one  of  our  national  societies,  I 
felt  his  approbation  of  my  plans  necessary  to  my  suc- 
cess. I  called  to  see  him,  and  was  introduced  into  his 
study.  I  soon  found  myself  in  converse  with  a  cour- 
teous, kind,  but  dignified  Christian  minister.  He  not 
only  approved  my  plans,  but  tendered  his  own  sub- 
scription to  the  object.  Finding,  on  inquiry,  as  I  was 
about  to  retire,  that  I  was  a  candidate  for  the  ministry, 
he  invited  me  to  a  seat  by  his  side ;  and  the  impres- 
sions made  upon  my  mind  and  heart  by  his  kind  in- 
quiries, by  his  paternal  advice,  are  vivid  to  this  hour. 
He  dismissed  me  with  his  blessings  upon  myself  and 
my  object.  Never  was  a  revolution  more  entire  wrought 
in  the  feelings  of  a  man,  and  from  that  day  forward 
he  was  my  counselor  in  cases  of  difficulty  ;  and  so 
pleasant  and  simple  was  he  in  private,  that,  on  leaving 
my  family  after  an  occasional  visit  of  a  few  days,  my 
little  children  would  cling  to  his  feet  and  his  garments, 
crying  out,  "  You  must  not  go,  Dr.  Green."  I  feel 
quite  sure  that  those  who  only  knew  him  in  Presbyte- 
ries and  Synods,  and  especially  in  the  ardent  conflicts 
of  the  Greneral  Assembly,  of  which  he  was  almost  a 
standing  member,  have  the  most  erroneous  views  of 
his  true  character. 


THE     REV.    A  SHE  EL.     GREEN,    D.  D. 

Truthful.  A  truer  explanation.  Fools  and  wise. 

2.  His  was  a  truthful  character.     Truth  was  to  him 
truth ;  and  what  he  believed  he  felt  and  acted  out. 
His  was  not  the  policy  to  believe  one  way  and  act  an- 
other.    Such  policy  he  scorned,  and  withheld  his  con- 
fidence from  those  who  practiced  it.     A  man  cast  in 
such  a  mould  is  likely  to  be  unpopular  with  that  large 
class  of  persons  who  regard  truth  with  less  reverence  ; 
who  stretch  it  or  contract  it  to  suit  circumstances ; 
who,  in  the  bad  sense  of  the  phrase,  are  ready  to  be- 
come "  all  things  to  all  men."     They  are  prejudiced, 
obstinate,  bigoted,  sectarian.     But  there  is  a  better  and 
truer  explanation  of  all  this.     There  is  a  deep  and 
heartfelt  reverence  for  the  truth  as  such,  which,  on  all 
occasions,  and  every  where,  forbids  its  compromise  on 
the  ground  of  mere  worldly  expediency.     There  is  an 
inner  reverence  for  it,  in  kind  and  degree,  like  unto 
that  which  is  felt  for  God  himself.     This  was  conspic- 
uous through  the  whole  long  life  of  Dr.  Green ;  and 
often  have  I  heard  him  censuring,  with  far  greater  se- 
verity, what  he  considered  the  crooked  policy  of  his 
friends,  who  always  acted  with  him,  than  that  of  his 
opponents,  who  always  pursued  a  different  policy  from 
his.     His  firmness  was  at  an  equal  remove  from  fick- 
leness and  obstinacy,  which  are  alike  alien  to  a  truly 
noble  character.     The  one  is  barren  of  good  as  the 
yielding  wave,  the  other  as  the  unyielding  rock.     Al- 
though holding  his  opinions  strongly,  he  was  ever  will- 
ing to  yield  them  for  good  reasons.     A  fool  never 
changes  his  opinions,  but  a  wise  man  always  will  for 
sufficient  cause. 

3.  He  was  a  most  fervent  and  instructive  preacher. 


138  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

As  a  preacher.  Manner.  Style.  Lectures. 


Although  I  never  heard  him  preach  until  he  had  passed 
the  meridian  of  life  ;  until,  fearful  of  attacks  of  vertigo, 
to  which  he  was  subject,  he  generally  declined  the  pul- 
pit ;  yet  the  few  sermons  I  have  heard  him  deliver 
very  deeply  impressed  his  hearers,  and  very  obviously 
indicated  that,  in  the  prime  of  his  years,  he  was  a  man 
of  no  ordinary  power.  His  utterance  was  distinct,  his 
manner  was  calm  and  dignified ;  if  he  never  rose  to 
the  higher  style  of  action,  he  always  attained  its  end, 
attention  and  impression ;  he  made  you  feel  that  he 
entirely  believed  every  word  he  uttered,  and  that  it 
was  of  infinite  moment  that  you  should  believe  them 
also.  The  minister  that  uniformly  makes  this  impres- 
sion must  be  one  of  great  power. 

Nor  was  the  impression  which  he  made  simply  that 
of  manner ;  his  matter  was  always  weighty,  well  ar- 
ranged, and  instructive.  If  his  topics  were  common- 
place, they  were  always  important ;  if  his  discussions 
were  sometimes  dry,  they  were  clear  as  a  sunbeam ; 
if  you  could  not  always  adopt  his  opinions,  there  was 
no  mistake  as  to  what  he  meant.  In  all  my  inter- 
course with  him,  I  had  never  cause  to  ask,  "  What  do 
you  mean,  sir  ?"  nor  do  I  remember  a  sentence  in  all 
his  writings  which  is  not  entirely  transparent. 

His  most  valuable  lectures  on  the  Shorter  Catechism, 
and  his  published  sermons,  give  a  fair  specimen  of  his 
ordinary  style  of  preaching.  If  they  have  not  the  am- 
plitude of  Chalmers,  nor  the  polished  eloquence  of  Hall, 
nor  the  warmth  of  Davies,  they  have  the  purity  of 
Blair,  in  union  with  a  natural  simplicity,  which  strong- 
ly fix  their  truly  evangelical  sentiments  in  the  mind 


THE     REV.    ASHBEL     GREEN,    D.  D.  139 

An  expounder.  Sabbath-school  teachers. 

and  hear.t.  Hence  the  devoted  attachment,  both  to 
him  and  his  sentiments,  of  all  who  ever  enjoyed  his 
ministrations. 

He  greatly  excelled  as  an  expounder  of  the  word  of 
Clod.  Of  his  talent  in  this  way  I  had  an  abundance 
of  opportunity  of  forming  a  judgment.  The  Sabbath- 
school  teachers  of  Philadelphia  adopted  a  rule  to  have 
the  same  Bible  lesson  taught  on  the  same  Sabbath  in 
all  schools  of  the  city,  and  to  have  the  lesson  expound- 
ed to  them  by  some  clergyman.  The  lecture-room  in 
Cherry  Street  was  the  place,  and  Dr.  Green  was  the 
man  selected.  On  each  evening  the  large  room  was 
crowded  by  one  of  the  most  interesting  and  interested 
audiences  I  ever  beheld ;  and  although  Dr.  Green  was 
then  approaching  his  threescore  years  and  ten,  never 
did  I  hear  more  clear,  and  full,  and  fresh,  and  pleasing 
expositions  of  divine  truth.  At  the  close  of  the  lecture, 
opportunity  was  given  for  the  asking  of  any  questions 
upon  any  points  that  were  left  unexplained,  which 
were  always  answered  with  a  promptness  which  show- 
ed the  remarkable  fullness  of  his  mind  upon  all  topics 
connected  with  the  exposition  or  elucidation  of  the 
Scriptures.  I  know  not  that  I  ever  attended  a  more 
instructive  religious  service.  I  have  learned  that  it 
was  greatly  blessed  of  God  to  the  conversion  and  edifi- 
cation of  Sabbath-school  teachers.  He  served  his  gen- 
eration in  more  dignified  stations,  but  probably  in  none 
more  usefully  than  when  expounding  the  word  of  life 
to  nearly  a  thousand  young  men  and  women,  who,  on 
each  successive  Sabbath,  sought  to  impress  those  views 
received  from  him  on  the  minds  of  ten  thousand  chil- 


140  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Devotional  spirit.  Devotional  compositions. 

dren.  Might  not  this  plan  be  successfully  revived  in 
all  our  cities  ? 

4.  He  was  a  truly  devotional  man.  His  public  de- 
votional services  were  always  peculiarly  impressive. 
They  were  solemn,  pathetic,  reverential,  appropriate, 
and  never  unduly  protracted.  In  the  family  he  always 
commenced  morning  and  evening  prayer  with  implor- 
ing a  blessing  upon  the  service  ;  and  while  engaged  in 
them,  all  felt  that  he  was  conversing  'with  God  as  a 
man  converses  with  a  friend.  I  have  often  heard  him 
express  his  regrets  at  the  little  preparation  ministers 
often  make  for  conducting  the  devotional  exercises  of 
a  congregation,  and  I  have  heard  him  state  that  in  the 
early  part  of  his  ministry  he  was  in  the  habit  of  writ- 
ing prayers  with  equal  regularity  as  sermons ;  and, 
while  he  never  read  them,  nor  committed  them  to 
memory,  the  writing  of  them  furnished  him  with  topics 
for  prayer,  and  gave  to  those  topics  arrangement,  and 
to  the  expression  of  them  variety  and  appropriateness. 
For  this  thought  he  may  have  been  indebted  to  his 
venerated  tutor,  Dr.  Witherspoon,  who  always  recom- 
mended devotional  composition  to  his  theological  stu- 
dents, of  whom  Dr.  Green  was  one. 

My  first  sermon  was  preached  in  the  Third  Presby- 
terian Church,  Philadelphia,  then  under  the  pastoral 
care  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Ely,  and  from  the  text  "  Compel 
them  to  come  in."  Dr.  Ely  was  absent,  and  to  my 
confusion,  Dr.  Green  entered  the  church  just  at  the 
opening  of  the  service.  Feeling  it  better  to  have  him 
behind  me  than  before  me,  I  sent  for  him  to  the  pulpit. 
In  my  ardor  to  stimulate  ministers  and  Christians  to 


THE     REV.    ASHBEL     GREEN,    D.  D.  141 

First  sermon.  Re-written.  Last  interview. 

do  their  duty,  I  omitted  almost  any  allusion  to  the  nec- 
essary agency  of  the  Spirit  to  secure  their  success.  He 
made  the  concluding  prayer,  in  which,  with  his  accus- 
tomed felicity,  he  converted  the  topics  discussed  into 
supplications,  and  then  brought  out  most  prominently 
and  emphatically  the  essential  truth  by  me  omitted. 
I  felt  that  the  whole  congregation  saw  and  felt  the  de- 
fect of  my  sermon.  His  kindness  was  marked  at  the 
close  of  the  service.  I  went  to  my  study,  re-wrote  my 
sermon,  put  into  it  the  prayer  of  Dr.  Green,  and  it  is 
unnecessary  to  say  that  it  was  greatly  improved  by 
the  addition.  I  subsequently  mentioned  the  fact  to 
him,  and  we  had  over  it  a  hearty  laugh. 

My  very  last  interview  with  him  impressed  me  with 
the  depth  of  that  spirit  of  devotion  which  characterized 
his  life.  He  was  feeble,  and  forgetful,  and  in  a  mood 
to  talk  but  very  little  to  any  body.  Hearing  that  I 
was  in  the  city,  he  sent  for  me,  that  I  might  attend  to 
a  matter  of  business  for  him  connected  with  the  New 
Jersey  Historical  Society.  I  entered  his  study  on  a 
May  morning  about  nine  o'clock.  His  Greek  Testa- 
ment was  open  before  him.  He  requested  me  to  be 
seated.  The  business  ended,  he  waved  his  hand,  say- 
ing, "  My  devotional  reading  is  not  yet  concluded ;  I 
shall  be  happy  to  see  you  at  another  time ;"  and  as  I 
closed  the  door  of  his  study,  the  prayer,  "  God  bless 
you,"  fell  upon  my  ear;  the  last  words  I  ever  heard 
him  utter.  All  testify  that  the  closing  years  of  his  life 
were  marked  by  a  spirit  remarkably  devotional. 

5.  He  possessed  a  truly  catholic  spirit.  This  asser- 
tion, perhaps,  will  startle  some  who  only  knew  his  pub- 


142  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

Catholic  spirit.  Dr.  Woods.  Thankful  for  all  good  done. 

lie  character,  and  who  have  only  heard  of  him  as  an 
impersonation  of  Old-school  Presbyterianism.  Yet  it 
is  true  to  the  letter.  His  own  views  he  held  strongly, 
but  in  perfect  charity  to  those  who  differed  from  him. 
Although  his  contributions  and  exertions  were  mainly 
confined  to  the  organization  of  his  own  Church,  it  was 
out  of  consistency  with  himself,  and  not  out  of  illiber- 
ality  to  others.  More  than  once  have  I  heard  him  de- 
tail an  account  of  a  visit  made  by  the  venerable  Dr. 
Woods,  for  so  many  years  the  ornament  of  the  Ando- 
ver  Theological  Seminary.  They  compared  views  on 
theological  and  other  subjects,  and  while  they  differed 
a  little  in  the  explanations  of  some  positions,  they  rad- 
ically agreed.  "  Would  to  Grod,"  I  have  heard  him 
say,  "  that  ah1  our  ministers  and  churches  held  the  sen- 
timents of  my  brother  Woods."  And  after  the  disrup- 
tion of  our  Church,  he  never  permitted  a  day  to  pass 
without  the  most  fervent  prayers  to  God  on  the  behalf 
of  the  brethren  to  whom  he  was  regarded  as  being  so 
violently  opposed.  He  had  none  of  the  narrow  secta- 
rianism that  would  confine  the  Church  visible  to  those 
only  who  walked  with  him ;  and  often  have  I  heard 
him  rejoice  in  the  good  that  was  doing  by  Methodists, 
Baptists,  Episcopalians,  to  all  of  whom,  as  Christians 
and  as  ministers,  he  could  extend  the  right  hand  of 
fellowship,  although  on  all  suitable  occasions  he  could 
strongly  maintain  the  positions  on  which  he  differed 
from  them.  There  is  not  probably  a  national  society 
for  the  spread  of  the  Grospel  in  this  land  to  which  he 
was  not  a  contributor,  and  of  which  he  was  not  a  mem- 
ber or  a  manager ;  while  he  may  be  considered  the  fa- 


THE     REV.    ASHBEL     GREEN,    D.  D.  143 

Anecdote.  Bishop  White.  Son  of  cdnsolation. 

ther  of  nearly  all  the  Boards  and  Societies  of  his  own 
deeply- venerated  Church.  "  Nobody  will  question  the 
Presbyterianism  of  Dr.  Green,"  said  an  eloquent  divine, 
during  a  debate  in  the  General  Assembly,  "  as  he  was 
dyed  in  the  wool."  "  The  brother  mistakes,"  said  Dr. 
Green,  with  that  promptness  of  repartee  which  he  pos- 
sessed ;  "  the  Lord,  by  his  grace,  made  me  a  Presbyte- 
rian." And  although  the  principles  of  his  Church 
were  interwoven  with  his  spiritual  life,  and  formed  a 
part  of  it,  yet  he  had  the  most  cordial  love  for  the  chil- 
dren of  God,  by  whatever  name  called.  Never  have  I 
heard  him  speak  with  more  affection  of  any  man  than 
of  his  friend,  the  amiable  and  venerated  Bishop  "White. 
6.  He  was  remarkably  gifted  as  a  son  of  consolation 
to  desponding  souls.  This,  perhaps,  was  mainly  owing 
to  his  own  simple  views  of  divine  truth,  and  his  rich 
experience  of  its  power.  He  had  the  power  of  simpli- 
fying every  subject  on  which  he  spoke  or  wrote,  and 
of  doing  it  in  a  few  words.  This  is  very  apparent  in 
his  lectures  on  the  Shorter  Catechism,  prepared  for  the 
youth  of  his  own  congregation.  When  anxious  or  de- 
sponding souls  applied  to  him  for  direction,  he  first 
sought  out  the  cause  of  trouble,  and  then,  like  a  well- 
instructed  scribe,  he  so  simply  presented  and  applied 
the  remedial  truth,  as  to  give,  if  not  immediate,  yet 
speedy  relief.  He  acted  upon  the  principle,  that  "  if 
the  truth  makes  us  free,  we  are  free  indeed."  Hence 
aged,  desponding  Christians,  and  individuals  asking 
what  they  should  do  to  be  saved,  and  from  different 
congregations  in  the  city,  were  often  found  in  his  study 
seeking  his  counsels.  On  such  occasions  there  was  a 


144  PARISH     PENCILINGS, 

Anecdote.  Miss  Linnard.  The  bruised  reed. 

kindness  and  blandness  in  his  manner,  which  formed 
the  greatest  psssible  contrast  with  his  stern  and  un- 
flinching position  when  contending  for  principles  on 
the  floor  of  the  G-eneral  Assembly. 

A  case  in  illustration  of  this  I  will  state.  Twenty- 
five  years  ago,  the  name  of  Miss  Linnard,  whose  me- 
moir has  since  been  published,  was  familiar  to  the  pious 
female  circles  of  Philadelphia.  She  shone  conspicu- 
ously among  them  for  her  fine  sense,  great  activity, 
and  deep  piety.  A  minister,  still  living,  preached  a 
preparatory  lecture  in  the  church  in  Spruce  Street,  of 
which  she  was  a  member,  on  the  text,  "  Lovest  thou 
me  ?"  which  cast  her  into  the  deepest  gloom.  Such 
were  the  strong  and  vivid  representations  which  he 
made  as  to  the  necessary  preparations  for  the  right 
partaking  of  the  Lord's  Supper,  that,  conscious  of  not 
possessing  them,  she  resolved  not  to  commune.  Her 
sense  of  duty  and  her  deep  depression  of  feeling  came 
into  conflict,  and  greatly  excited  her  soul.  In  this  state 
she  had  recourse  to  Dr.  Green,  who  had  heard  the  lec- 
ture. "  My  dear  child,"  said  he,  "  our  excellent  broth- 
er seemed  to  forget  that  the  Lord's  table  is  spread,  not 
for  angels,  but  for  sinners.  He  has  come,  not  to  call 
the  righteous,  but  sinners  to  repentance.  It  is  the 
weary  and  heavy  laden  he  invites  to  himself,  and  to 
the  privileges  of  his  house."  It  was  enough.  She  left 
his  study  rejoicing  in  the  Lord ;  and  a  more  joyful 
communion  season  she  had  never  spent  on  earth.  I 
heard  the  lecture,  and  the  incident  here  narrated  I 
have  had  from  both  parties.  And  this,  I  feel  per- 
suaded, is  a  fair  illustration  of  his  skill  and  success  as 


THE     REV.    ASHBEL     GREEN,    D.  D.  145 

As  a  literary  man.  President  of  Princeton  College. 

-a  comforter  of  the  Lord's  people,  and  as  a  director  of 
the  inquiring  to  the  cross  of  Jesus  Christ. 

It  remains  for  me  only  to  speak  of  him  as*a  literary 
man.  As  his  life  and  writings  will  do  his  memory  full 
justice  upon  this  subject,  I  need  say  but  little  upon  it. 
His  academic  habits  he  carried  with  him  into  his  pas- 
toral life,  and  always  took  rank  in  the  very  first  class 
of  the  educated  men  of  his  own  age — with  such  men 
as  Dwight,  and  Smith,  and  Wilson,  and  Mason.  If  he 
was  excelled  in  brilliancy  by  these,  and  others  with 
whom  he  ranked,  he  was  fully  their  equal  in  all  solid 
attainments.  It  was  no  ordinary  tribute  to  his  literary 
character  that  he  should  be  selected  to  succeed  Dr. 
Smith  as  the  President  of  Princeton  College,  in  which 
position  he  discharged  his  duties  as  instructor  with  dis- 
tinguished ability,  and,  in  a  religious  point  of  view, 
with  distinguished  usefulness.  It  was  during  his  pres- 
idency that  the  revival  occurred  which,  under  God, 
brought  into  the  Church  and  into  the  ministry  such 
men  as  Dr.  John  Breckinridge,  Dr.  Hodge,  Bishops 
Mcllvaine  of  Ohio,  and  Johns  of  Virginia.  On  retir- 
ing from  the  presidency,  he  commenced  the  Christian 
Advocate,  which  he  edited  for  twelve  years,  and  whose 
twelve  volumes  give  the  most  ample  testimony  to  his 
rich  scholarship,  his  keen  discrimination,  his  metaphys- 
ical acumen,  his  sharpness  as  a  critic,  and  to  the  ex- 
tent and  variety  of  his  reading.  Some  of  the  ablest 
productions  of  his  pen  were  written  after  he  had  passed 
his  fourscore  years ;  and  to  the  very  close  of  his  life 
his  Greek  Testament  was  his  daily  study,  and  he  could 
repeat  passages  from  the  Greek  and  Roman  classics 

G 


146  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Habits  of  study  An  example.  His  future. 

with  the  interest  and  vigor  of  a  school  boy.  His  hab-  • 
its  of  study  he  never  surrendered  to  the  last ;  and  I 
have  in  my  possession  a  note  written  to  me  on  business 
in  his  eighty-fifth  year — written  with  as  clear,  bold, 
and  steady  a  hand  as  if  written  in  his  fortieth  year. 
In  this  respect  he  is  an  example  worthy  of  imitation 
by  all  literary  men  in  advanced  years,  to  study,  write, 
and  work  to  the  last.  Still  waters  soon  stagnate  ;  run- 
ning waters  never.  The  mind,  unemployed,  like  the 
blade  of  Hudibras, 

"  Which  ate  into  itself,  for  lack 
Of  somebody  to  hew  and  hack," 

preys  upon  itself,  and  soon  passes  away. 

Such  is  my  estimate  of  the  character  of  Dr.  Green. 
By  others  who  knew  him  much  longer  and  more  in- 
timately, it  might  be  sketched,  more  strongly  and  truly  ; 
but  such  are  the  impressions  he  has  left  upon  my  mind 
and  heart  by  an  acquaintance  with  him  of  twenty 
years.  On  the  whole,  I  esteem  him  as  among  the 
ripest  scholars,  the  most  able  divines,  the  most  useful 
men  which  our  country  has  produced.  His  name  will 
be  more  closely  connected  with  the  history  and  prog- 
ress of  the  Presbyterian  Church  one  hundred  years 
hence,  than  that  of  any  of  his  predecessors.  He  well 
deserves  a  name  and  a  place  among  "  The  Lights  of 
the  American  Pulpit." 


BE  DIN  I,    THE     PAPAL     NUNCIO,    GONE.       147 

His  modesty.  Thebes.  Influence  of  titles. 


BEDINI,  THE  PAPAL  NUNCIO,  GONE! 

AND  is  it  so,  that  Monsieur  Archbishop  Gaetano  Be- 
dini,  with  all  his  suffixes  and  affixes,  is  gone  ?  Yes, 
'  he  is  gone  !  or,  as  a  Hebrew  of  olden  time  would  ex- 
press it,  "  He  has  turned  his  back — he  has  run  away." 
His  modesty  led  him  to  avoid  all  public  demonstra- 
tions, and  he  sought  to  get  out  of  the  country  between 
two  nights ;  and  now  he  is  safely,  as  we  trust,  on  his 
way  to  the  foot  of  the  Holy  Father,  to  render  an  ac- 
count of  his  mission  as  Nuncio  to  Brazil,  taking  the 
United  States  on  his  way!  And  now  that  the  farce 
is  ended,  and  that  Bedini  has  run  away,  it  may  be 
well  to  ponder  a  few  matters  and  things  concerning 
the  man  and  his  mission. 

He  came  here  with  the  high-sounding  title  of  Arch- 
bishop of  Thebes,  an  old  city  in  ruins  on  the  banks  of 
the  Nile,  which  it  is  presumed  he  has  never  seen,  and 
never  will.  The  Pope  knows  the  influence  of  titles 
over  weak  minds,  and  when  he  wants  an  agent,  he 
seeks  a  man  fitted  for  the  duty,  and  bestows  upon  him 
some  high-sounding  title,  at  once  to  gratify  his  vanity, 
and  to  gain  for  him  credit  and  access  among  the  peo- 
ple to  whom  he  is  sent.  Bedini  is  sent  here,  as  he  was 
once  sent  to  Bologna,  as  a  spy ;  and  that  he  might  the 
better  and  the  more  readily  perform  his  duties,  he  was 
made  Archbishop  of  Thebes,  and  had  bestowed  upon 


148  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

A  name  nothing !  Nuncio  to  Brazil.  A  spy. 

him  a  little  fillet  made  from  the  wool  of  holy  sheep  "by 
the  withered  nuns  of  St.  Agnes !  Had  he  come  simply 
as  a  priest,  he  would  pass  unnoticed  ;  but  as  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Thebes,  he  rides  in  the  mayor's  carriage,  and 
sails  in  a  government  steamer,  and  flourishes  his  ca- 
nonicals at  Albany  and  Washington  !  And  yet  some 
foolish  people  say  a  name  is  nothing ! 

But  he  merely  took  the  United  States  on  his  way  as 
Nuncio  to  Brazil !  Another  piece  of  low  trickery  ;  if 
not,  why  did  he  not  go  to  Brazil  ?  A  nuncio  is  an 
embassador  from  the  Pope  to  an  emperor  or  king ; 
when  an  envoy  is  sent  to  smaller  states,  and  with  lim- 
ited powers,  he  is  called  an  Internuncio.  And  that  he 
might  loom  up  the  more  largely  in  our  republican 
country,  the  title  of  Nuncio  to  Brazil  is  superadded  to 
that  of  Archbishop  of  Thebes !  And  the  facts  in  the 
case  are,  that  he  was  made  archbishop  of  a  city  that 
he  has  probably  never  seen,  and  never  will ;  and  that 
he  was  commissioned  as  nuncio  to  a  country  upon 
which  he  has  turned  his  back ;  and  all  for  the  purpose 
of  exciting  our  veneration  for  a  man,  the  object  of 
whose  mission  is  yet  concealed,  and  whose  person  and 
character,  his  own  noble  countrymen  being  witnesses, 
are  only  worthy  of  abhorrence. 

And  who  is  the  man  on  whom  the  Holy  Father  be- 
stowed these  titles  for  sinister  purposes  ?  The  Italians 
that  know  him  and  his  history  being  witnesses,  he  is 
a  man  of  low  origin,  who  acted  as  spy  at  Bologna  to 
mark  the  friends  of  liberty,  and  who,  when  clothed 
with  power  there,  because  of  the  ferocity  of  his  nature, 
gave  up  to  death  the  most  cruel  and  summary  the 


149 


Dregs  labeled.  Moral  character.  His  letter. 

persons  that  he  had  previously  marked  as  a  spy !  He 
was  first  the  spy,  and  next  the  butcher  of  Bologna ; 
and  then,  when  quailing  "before  the  indignant  scorn  of 
the  civilized  world,  he  sought  to  cast  his  crime  upon 
Austrian  soldiers,  as  if  blood  enough  were  not  crying 
to  heaven  against  them  !  How  rarely  do  we  find  such 
a  compound  of  the  dregs  of  humanity  labeled  with 
such  high-sounding  titles !  Spy,  priest,  butcher,  cow- 
ard, Archbishop  of  Thebes,  and  Nuncio  of  the  Pope  to 
the  empire  of  Brazil,  taking  the  United  States  in  his 
way ! ! 

And  what  is  the  moral  character  of  this  man  ?  To 
those  who  know  them,  it  is  enough  to  say  that  he  is 
an  Italian  priest  with  the  morals  of  his  order ;  and  to 
those  who  know  not  the  lives  of  the  priests  in  Italy, 
we  give  in  evidence  the  testimony  of  his  own  country- 
men, who  say  that  he  was  once  sent  to  Brazil  as  in- 
ternuncio,  but  was  recalled  because  of  his  shameless 
dissoluteness.  And  this  is  the  man  who  has  been 
consecrating  papal  bishops  and  churches  among  us, 
and  blessing  the  poor  people,  as  if  such  bloody  and  un- 
clean hands  could  be  employed  to  dispense  the  grace 
and  favors  of  Grod. 

But  he  came  with  a  letter  from  the  Pope  to  our 
President,  to  congratulate  him  on  his  accession  to  the 
presidency,  and  asking  him  for  his  protection  of  our 
papal  citizens ;  and  with  a  letter  from  Antonelli,  car- 
dinal secretary  of  state,  to  introduce  him,  and  praise 
him,  and  to  ask  kind  official  recognition  of  him  !  Did 
not  the  Pope  know  that  all  men  were  here  equal  before 
the  law,  civilly  and  religiously  ?  If  he  did,  what  more 


150  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

Effrontery.  Antonelli.  A  trio. 

could  he  ask  ?  If  he  did  not,  how  dare  he  to  ask  from 
us  for  his  believers  what  he  withholds  from  our  people 
who  believe  the  Bible  ?  He  shuts  the  English  out  of 
Rome,  and  confines  them,  in  their  worship,  to  a  bam 
of  a  place  without  the  walls ;  he  drives  the  Americans, 
in  their  worship,  under  the  flag  of  their  country  and  to 
the  rooms  of  our  legation ;  and  one  of  his  low,  vulgar 
dupes  here  says  that  our  minister  there,  if  found  suc- 
cessful in  converting  any  Romans,  would  be  kicked 
out  of  the  city  ;  and  yet  he  asks  our  President  for  his 
kind  protection  of  his  religious  vassals ! !  And  Anto- 
nelli !  Mr.  Cass,  the  Nestor  of  the  Senate,  might  know 
all  about  him,  and  might  have  known  more  about 
Bedini  before  his  recent  speech  in  reference  to  him. 
There  is  not  in  Italy  a  more  cold,  brutal,  heartless  ty- 
rant than  Antonelli ;  there  is  not  in  Rome  a  more  de- 
bauched clerical  libertine,  if  the  Romans  speak  the 
truth.  And  the  man  who  put  down  the  Roman  Re- 
public with  French  bayonets,  and  the  man  who  at  this 
hour  is  using  all  the  power  of  the  papal  Church  to  ex- 
tinguish every  spark  of  liberty  in  Europe,  and  who  is 
sending  every  Italian  patriot  on  whom  he  can  lay  his 
hands  to  death,  dungeons,  or  banishment,  commissions 
the  butcher  of  Bologna  to  visit  our  country  on  his  way 
to  Brazil,  to  congratulate  our  President  on  his  acces- 
sion to  the  chief  magistracy,  and  to  solicit  his  protec- 
tion of  our  Roman  Catholic  fellow-citizens !  What  a 
trio  of  priestly  tyrants,  with  their  feet  upon  the  neck 
and  their  daggers  at  the  heart  of  liberty  in  Europe, 
and  seeking  liberty  for  their  people  here,  where  all  are 
at  liberty  to  worship  as  they  will !  What  unblushing 


BEDINI,    THE     PAPAL     NUNCIO,    GONE.       151 
Questions.  His  errand.  The  voice  of  blood. 

effrontery !     Need  we  wonder  that  the  Germans  and 
Italians  are  excited  ? 

But  what  was  Bedini's  errand  here  ?  Why  call  him 
here  from  the  care  of  the  Thebans  ?  There  must  he 
some  pressing  necessity.  Why  send  him  round  here 
on  his  way  to  Brazil  ?  Antonelli  may  be  able  to  tell, 
so  may  Bishop  Hughes.  We  are  left  to  conjecture. 
There  was  some  little  difficulty  about  church  property 
in  Buffalo ;  the  same  difficulty  exists  in  other  places. 
It  is  very  hard  to  enforce  the  canon  law  here.  The 
people  here,  either  by  contagion  or  absorption,  imbibe 
some  notions  as  to  their  rights  and  privileges  which 
priests  and  bishops  find  it  difficult  to  manage.  Then 
our  school  laws  are  papistically  wrong ;  and  multitudes 
of  papists,  young  and  old,  are  forsaking  the  priest,  and 
Mary,  and  the  altar,  for  the  Bible,  the  Savior,  and  the 
pulpit.  It  was  thought  that  a  nuncio  might  set  these 
and  other  things  all  right.  And  Bishop  Hughes  him- 
self is  not  regarded  as  the  sharpest  and  wisest  at  head- 
quarters ;  in  Rome  he  is  called  a  blundering  Irishman. 
One  was  selected  who  had  learned  the  trade  of  a  spy 
in  Italy,  and  who  was  thought  to  be  able  to  spy  out 
the  true  causes  of  the  crumbling  of  Romanism  here, 
and  the  true  remedies  to  prevent  it.  But  his  wand 
would  not  work.  He  lifted  it  up,  and  called  for  the 
darkness,  but  it  would  not  come ;  and  before  ho  got 
half  through,  God  gave  a  tongue  to  the  blood  of  Ugo 
Bassi,  and  of  the  other  martyrs  of  Bologna,  which 
proclaimed  the  character  of  Bedim  through  the  land ; 
and  from  that  moment  the  lock  of  his  strength  was 
cut,  and  the  heart  of  the  people  swelled  with  detesta- 


152  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

The  mobs.  A  change.  Where  the  fox  ?  Another  nuncio. 

tion  of  the  monster ;  and  the  mobs,  composed  mostly 
of  those  from  papal  countries,  and  who  felt  the  iron  of 
tyranny  in  their  souls,  in  Cincinnati,  Baltimore,  and 
other  places,  like  the  spittings  of  the  volcano,  only  re- 
vealed the  slumbering  fires  that  lay  beneath. 

And  the  man  who  was  toasted  in  New  York — who 
rode  in  the  mayor's  carriage — who  was  feasted  at  the 
governor's  table — who  was  paraded  in  the  saloons  of 
secretaries  at  "Washington,  had  to  pack  his  vestments 
in  a  bag — to  cover  his  skull  with  something  that  con- 
cealed his  tonsure  —  to  steal  away  to  Staten  Island, 
and  to  pass  from  the  deck  of  a  tug  to  that  of  a  steamer 
for  England,  to  avoid  the  hootings  of  the  multitudes" 
whom  the  tyranny  of  papal  Europe  has  driven  from 
their  homes  to  our  shores !  Did  ever  any  man  so  go 
up  as  an  eagle,  and  so  come  down  as  a  goose ! 

And  where  is  Bishop  Hughes  at  the  closing  scene, 
who  figured  so  largely  in  the  farce  when  the  curtain 
first  rose?  The  fox,  he  saw  the  storm  coming — he 
very  likely  thought  Bedini  a  spy  upon  himself,  as  he 
no  doubt  was — he  laid  his  hand  on  his  side,  and  gave 
a  few  coughs,  and  found  it  necessary  to  go  to  Cuba  for 
his  health !  Halifax  would  not  do  in  mid- winter. 

"We  only  want  another  nuncio  on  his  way  to  Brazil 
to  complete  the  ruin  of  popery  in  this  land,  which  Be- 
dini has  so  largely  promoted.  The  prestige  of  popery 
is  all  gone ;  its  doctrines,  its  deceivings,  its  cunning 
craft,  the  character  of  its  priests,  taken  as  a  clan,  the 
most  heartless  impostors  on  earth,  are  all  understood. 
The  system  is  in  a  state  of  dissolution  every  where, 
and  were  it  not  for  the  alliance  there  is  between  it  and 


BEDINI,    THE     PAPAL     NUNCIO,    GONE.       153 

How  the  Romans  would  vote.  A  hint  to  politicians. 

despotism  to  support  one  another,  it  would  fall  to 
pieces  at  once.  If  the  free  votes  of  the  Romans  could 
be  taken  at  this  hour,  they  would  vote  the  Pope,  his 
cardinals,  bishops,  and  all  the  inferior  clergy,  at  least 
to  Purgatory,  if  not  a  little  beyond  it. 

And  it  is  fondly  to  be  hoped  that  our  political  men 
will  soon  be  made  to  feel  that  to  court  the  vote  of  the 
Romish  priest  and  his  people  is  to  forfeit  the  vote  of 
the  Protestant. 

"We  have  seen  the  first  and  the  last  nuncio  from 
Rome  in  the  United  States  on  his  way  to  Brazil. 
G-2 


154  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  great  runaway.  Things  said. 


BEDINI  AND  DR.  DUFF-A  CONTRAST. 

WHO  has  not  heard  of  Bedini,  the  Archbishop  of 
Thebes — the  Nuncio  of  the  Pope  to  Brazil,  taking  the 
United  States  on  his  way — the  spy  and  butcher  of 
Bologna — the  Great  Runaway !  He  came  here  a  bad 
man,  on  a  worse  mission — a  low  creature,  though  a 
high  ecclesiastic — with  nothing  to  recommend  him 
but  his  titles  and  his  feathers.  In  private,  he  was  do- 
ing the  work  of  him  that  sent  him,  the  Pope ;  in  pub- 
lic, he  was  courting  the  dignitaries  of  the  state  and 
the  attention  of  the  people.  Scared  by  some  demon- 
strations made  by  his  own  countrymen  and  other  for- 
eigners to  testify  their  appreciation  of  his  character, 
he  passed  incog,  from  "Washington  to  New  York.  It 
is  said  that  he  was  concealed  some  days  in  the  city ; 
"but,  as  the  storm  was  thickening  instead  of  passing 
away,  he  sent  for  the  mayor,  and  implored  his  protec- 
tion. It  is  said  that,  moved  by  his  awful  terror  and 
dread  of  assassination,  the  mayor  applied  to  the  col- 
lector for  a  vessel  from  the  revenue  service  to  carry 
him  out  of  the  city,  but  that  the  collector  declined  to 
interfere.  It  is  said  that  application  was  made  to  the 
government  for  instructions  in  reference  to  the  Latin 
priest,  and  that  orders  were  sent  to  get  him  away  as 
soon  as  possible,  and  at  public  expense.  It  is  known 
that  he  went  incog,  to  Staten  Island  ;  that  on  the  day 


BEDINI    AND    DR.    DUFF A     CONTRAST.    155 

The  old  tug.  True  ministers — priests.  Stealing  away. 

of  the  sailing  of  the  Atlantic  he  was  sent  on  board  an 
old  tug,  the  most  unpretending  that  could  be  found,  in 
order  to  avoid  suspicion  and  expense,  and  placed  on 
board  the  steamer ;  and  that  he  took  his  departure  as 
Nuncio  from  the  United  States  to  Rome,  taking  Eng- 
land on  his  way.  Alas,  poor  Yorick  ! 

If  all  this  does  not  teach  the  Pope,  and  his  priests, 
and  their  dupes  a  lesson  as  to  the  state  of  American 
feeling,  and  the  sentiment  of  its  free  people  on  the  sub- 
ject of  Popery,  it  is  difficult  to  tell  what  can.  It  es- 
pecially teaches  them  that  no  man,  in  whose  skirts  or 
on  whose  hands  can  be  found  a  spot  made  by  the  blood 
of  freemen,  slaughtered  because  of  even  unwise  efforts 
to  obtain  liberty,  need  expect  to  be  otherwise  treated 
than  as  a  foe  to  humanity  by  the  free  people  of  this 
land.  If  the  Austrian  Haynau  could  not  live  in  Eng- 
land, how  could  the  Italian  Bedini  hope  to  enjoy  an 
ovation  in  the  United  States  ?  But  he  hoped  his  em- 
broidered vestment,  and  his  pallium,  made  from  "  the 
wool  of  holy  sheep,"  would  screen  him.  But  no ;  while 
in  no  country  on  earth  are  the  true  ministers  of  relig- 
ion more  respected  than  with  us,  in  no  country  on  earth 
are  priestly  hypocrites  more  detested.  Hence,  after  his 
character  became  known,  poor  Bedini  had  to  cover  his 
tonsure,  and  to  hide  his  long  coat,  and  to  put  the  cru- 
cifix that  dangled  on  his  breast  in  his  pocket,  and  to 
put  aside  all  his  priestly  regalia,  lest  they  should  at- 
tract attention  to  his  person ;  and  then  to  steal  away 
as  a  thief  from  a  country  where  he  expected  to  be  hon- 
ored as  a  prince.  And  you  might  as  well  attempt  to 
quell  the  swellings  of  the  ocean  as  attempt  to  prevent 


156  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Alexander  Duff.  History.  Small  beginning. 

the  rising  of  all  free  hearts  against  such  a  man.  This 
the  mayor  of  Cincinnati  has  learned  to  his  cost.  But 
he  is  gone  !  We  shall  be  glad  to  learn  his  reception  at 
the  court  of  Brazil,  now  that  he  has  taken  the  United 
States  on  his  way. 

As  the  steamer  that  was  conveying  Bedini  from  our 
shores  was  receding,  another  steamer  might  he  seen 
approaching  them,  with  a  very  different  man  on  board. 
That  man  was  Alexander  Duff.  His  history  is  a  brief 
but  pregnant  one.  In  his  youth  he  devoted  himself  to 
Grod  and  the  cause  of  Missions.  He  left  Scotland,  his 
native  land,  for  India  in  1829,  and  was  wrecked  on  the 
rocks  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  losing  every  thing  but 
his  Bible,  which  was  found  on  the  beach  where  it  was 
washed  by  the  waves.  Nothing  daunted,  he  sailed 
thence  for  India,  and  in  a  fierce  hurricane,  peculiar  to 
those  latitudes,  was  again  wrecked  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Granges,  and  only  escaped  with  his  life.  He  reached 
Calcutta,  with  his  plans  all  formed,  and  with  the  fixed 
resolution  to  carry  them  out.  If  esteemed  a  fanatic  at 
home,  when  Moderatism,  like  a  mountain  of  ice,  crush- 
ed and  chilled  the  heart  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  he 
was  received  with  marked  coldness  by  officials  abroad. 
One  man  only  encouraged  him,  and  he  was  a  heathen, 
the  famous  Ramohun  Roy.  The  young  missionary 
hired  a  small  room,  and  commenced  his  great  work 
with  five  heathen  boys.  Such  was  the  small  begin- 
ning of  the  Church  of  Scotland's  Missions  in  India ! 
That  room  grew  into  the  famous  College  of  Calcutta, 
now  the  light  of  India,  and  the  five  boys  into  fourteen 
hundred  pupils. 


BEDINI     AND     DR.    DUFF A     CONTRAST.    157 

Sacrifices.  Apostle  of  India.  Honor  declined. 

On  the  disruption  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  the 
missionary  decided  to  go  out  with  the  Free  Church ; 
and  although  the  college  "buildings  were  mainly  erect- 
ed through  his  own  individual  exertions,  he  was  com- 
pelled to  abandon  them,  to  go  out  empty-handed,  and 
to  find  accommodations  as  he  could  for  his  pupils.  But 
when  Christ's  crown  and  headship  in  the  Church  were 
at  stake,  he  could  not  hesitate  a  moment;  and  al- 
though not  so  well  accommodated  as  formerly,  that 
college  was  never  so  useful  or  more  fully  attended  than 
now.  The  great  and  successful  labors  of  this  mission- 
ary in  Calcutta  are  felt  in  all  India,  from  Ceylon  to 
the  Himalayas ;  they  are  felt  in  their  reflex  influence 
on  the  entire  Church  of  God.  His  great  mental  pow- 
er, his  entire  consecration,  his  sleepless  industry,  his 
wise  plans,  his  perseverance  in  following  them  out, 
have  enabled  him  to  do  in  India  a  work  of  vast  mag- 
nitude, and  of  the  greatest  importance  ;  and  although 
under  fifty  years  of  age,  his  name  is  in  all  the  earth  as 
"  the  Apostle  of  India." 

On  the  death,  we  might  almost  say  the  translation 
of  Dr.  Chalmers,  this  missionary  was  selected  to  fill 
his  place  -as  a  professor  of  divinity  in  the  Free  Church 
College,  as  the  man  best  fitted  to  succeed  to  the  chair 
vacated  by  him  who  in  his  life  was  designated  as  "  the 
greatest  of  living  Scotchmen."  But  he  declined  the 
honor,  for  the  reason  that  he  had  consecrated  himself 
to  the  heathen,  and  desired  to  live  and  die  among 
them.  On  his  return  to  Scotland  he  was  elected,  by 
acclamation,  moderator  of  the  Free  Assembly  of  1851. 
Since  that  time,  although  in  feeble  health,  he  has  been 


158  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

His  eloquence.  Simplicity.  A  missionary. 

through  Scotland,  England,  and  Ireland,  in  labors 
abundant,  and  with  a  fervid  eloquehce  that  has  not 
been  surpassed,  seeking  to  rouse  every  branch  of  the 
Church  of  Grod  to  more  earnest  efforts  for  the  conver- 
sion of  the  world.  The  writer  of  this  article  heard  him, 
on  one  occasion,  pour  forth  his  soul  for  three  hours 
upon  the  most  densely  crowded  and  deeply  interested 
audience  he  ever  saw;  his  appeals  now  melting  the 
entire  assembly  into  tears,  and  now  filling  the  ample 
building  with  thundering  applause. 

This  great  missionary,  the  Rev.  Alexander  Duff,  is 
now  in  our  country.  He  was  landed  on  our  shores 
just  as  Bedini  had  left  them.  He  brought  with  him 
no  letters  from  pope,  prince,  or  prelate.  The  fame  of 
his  labors  and  Christian  virtues  had  preceded  him.  No 
Antonelli  lauds  his  gifts  and  his  virtues.  He  needs  no 
such  doubtful  praise.  He  is  no  archbishop  of  tottering 
pillars,  and  crumbling  walls,  and  piles  of  ruins,  amid 
which  the  cormorant  and  the  bittern,  the  owl  and  the 
raven  hoot,  and  over  which  the  adder  and  the  serpent 
trail  their  slime.  He  comes  not  here  on  his  way  as  a 
messenger  from  a  doting  tyrant  in  the  Old  World  to 
some  other  tyrant  in  the  New.  His  hair  is  unshaven 
on  his  head.  He  wears  no  priestly  vestments  to  catch 
vulgar  eyes.  He  is  simply  a  missionary  who  has  spent 
most  of  his  life  among  the  heathen,  and  who  has  come 
to  tell  us  of  the  degradation,  and  the  wants,  and  the 
rising  civilization  of  India.  He  is  simply  a  noble, 
self-sacrificing  Christian  minister,  who  has  come  with 
the  greetings  of  Protestant  Britain  to  Protestant  Amer- 
ica. Although  a  Scotchman  by  birth,  we  all  claim 


BEDINI     AND     DR.    DUFF A     CONTRAST.    159 

Passing  through  the  country.  His  departure. 

him  as  a  fellow-citizen ;  although  a  Presbyterian  in 
religion,  we  all  claim  him  as  a  fellow-Christian. 
*  His  life  and  labors  are  known  to  the  world.  He  has 
worn  himself  out  in  seeking  to  excite,  not  to  suppress 
free  thought — to  elevate,  not  to  depress  the  race ;  in 
seeking  to  teach  the  world  that  faith  in  Christ,  not 
faith  in  the  Pope,  is  the  way  io  heaven.  No  blood 
cries  to  heaven  against  him.  No  Scotchman  will  rise 
up  save  to  claim  him  as  a  countryman,  and  to  pro- 
claim him  "  every  inch  a  man."  As  he  passes  through 
the  land,  no  mobs  will  meet  him  with  effigies ;  no 
police  will  be  needed  to  protect  him ;  and  if  he  rides 
not  in  the  mayor's  carriage — if  he  sails  not  in  a  gov- 
ernment steamer — if  he  is  not  feasted  in  a  governor's 
house — if  he  is  not  paraded  in  secretaries'  saloons  in 
Washington,  he  will  be  welcomed  as  a  Christian  phi- 
lanthropist of  the  highest  stamp  by  every  Christian 
man  from  one  end  of  the  Union  to  the  other. 

And  when  his  journey  ings  are  ended,  and  the  time 
for  his  return  to  his  own  land  has  arrived,  he  will  need 
no  protection  from  mayor  or  magistrate — he  will  need 
no  tug  to  draw  him  from  his  concealment  to  a  steamer 
in  the  bay,  to  avoid  the  hootings  of  the  multitudes  that 
would  greet  him  if  he  went  on  board  at  the  wharf.  We 
will  accompany  him  to  the  ship ;  we  will  give  him  our 
parting  blessing,  and  receive  his  ;  and  we  will  sorrow 
most  of  all  that  we  shall  see  his  face  no  more. 


160  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Two  characters.  The  Nuncio.  How  treated. 


BEDJNI  AND  DUFF— ANOTHER  CONTRAST. 

WITHIN  a  few  months  past  our  country  has  been  vis- 
ited by  two  persons,  each  celebrated  in  his  way,  and 
creating  no  little  excitement,  and  each  the  represent- 
ative of  systems  and  principles  as  diverse  as  the  noon 
of  night  and  the  noon  of  day.  The  one  was  the  cele- 
brated Monsieur  Graetano  Bedini,  Archbishop  of  Thebes, 
Apostolic  Nuncio  to  Brazil,  taking  the  United  States  on 
his  way,  and  so  forth,  and  so  forth.  He  came  with 
high-sounding  titles ;  with  letters  from  the  Pope,  and 
his  secretary,  Antonelli,  lauding  his  talents  and  his 
virtues ;  dressed  in  full  regalia,  as  brilliant  as  the  plu- 
mage of  the  strutting  peacock.  These  things  took  for 
a  time  with  that  stratum  of  humanity  with  which 
such  things  take,  and  the  creature,  thus  dressed  up  in 
names  and  in  vestments,  was  paraded  here  and  there 
as  quite  a  character.  And  such  he  certainly  was — 
and  is,  if  he  yet  survives  his  fright  on  leaving  our 
shores.  The  passage  of  this  magnificent  ecclesiastic 
through  portions  of  our  country  is  yet  familiar  to  all 
our  people.  To  make  political  capital  with  those  who 
regard  the  character  and  blessings  of  such  a  harlequin, 
politicians,  here  and  there,  treated  him  with  some  ex- 
ternal marks  of  respect.  But  when  his  true  character 
was  made  known  by  those  Italians  who  sought  hero 
an  asylum  from  papal  cruelty ;  when  the  ory  of  the 


BEDINI     AND    DUF  F— A  NOTHER     CONTRAST.    161 

The  storm.  Hegira.  The  tug.  Smuggling. 

blood  of  the  murdered  Ugo  Bassi,  and  of  those  who  fell 
with  him  as  martyrs  to  liberty  in  Bologna,  proclaimed 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  that  Bedini  was  their 
executioner,  it  was  all  over  with  the  tonsured  nuncio. 
The  storm  commenced  on  the  banks  of  the  Ohio ;  it 
followed  him  across  the  Alleghanies  to  Washington, 
Baltimore,  and  New  York.  Finding  that  the  "Ven- 
eratissimo"  John,  of  New  York,  had  retired  from  the 
track  of  the  storm  to  Cuba,  under  plea  of  health,  he 
concealed  himself  as  he  could,  in  secluded  parts  of  the 
city,  until  the  plan  of  his  hegira  was  completed.  A 
day  or  two  previous  to  the  sailing  of  a  steamer  for 
England,  a  few  men,  muffled,  and  looking  suspiciously 
around,  might  be  seen  crossing  to  Staten  Island,  where 
they  were  hidden  away  by  some  friend,  as  were  the 
spies  of  Joshua  in  Jericho  by  Rahab.  On  the  morning 
of  the  sailing  of  the  steamer,  an  old  "  tug"  might  be 
seen  pressing  its  way  to  an  adjacent  wharf.  As  it  put 
forth  no  pretensions  to  be  a  boat  for  passengers,  no 
decent  person  thought  of  noticing  it.  As  the  noble 
steamer  fired  her  signal  guns  for  departure,  the  muffled 
gentry  made  their  way  to  the  tug,  which  swung  from 
her  moorings  as  soon  as  they  stepped  on  board.  She 
paddled  into  the  stream;  Bedini  was  smuggled  on 
board  the  steamer  ;  and  thus  he  passed  away  from  our 
shores  amid  appalling  fears  and  terrors,  which  made 
the  little  hair  left  by  the  priestly  razor  on  his  head  to 
stiffen  into  straight  lines,  and  without  a  solitary  being 
to  bid  him  farewell.  We  take  it  for  granted  that  his 
priestly  attendants  were  rejoiced  to  get  rid  of  him. 
It  is  said  that  when  he  got  fairly  on  board,  he  com- 


162  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

The  crucifix.  Famous  letter.  A  papal  prayer. 

menoed  most  devoutly  kissing  a  crucifix;  and  that 
when  he  got  quietly  seated,  he  read  his  Missal  with 
race-horse  rapidity.  "When,  during  the  voyage,  the 
winds  of  February  rolled  up  the  waves  of  the  Atlantic 
into  stormy  billows,  it  is  said  he  manifested  great  ter- 
ror; and,  'when  he  got  safely  to  London,  he  wrote 
back  for  our  edification  the  famous  letter  of  February 
17th,  to  the  Archbishop  of  Baltimore,  in  which  he 
seems  to  weep  with  rage,  to  pray  like  Lucifer,  to  laugh 
like  a  hyena,  to  deny  aDeged  charges  so  as  to  prove 
them,  and  which,  after  gravely  informing  us  that  he 
sent  "  a  number  of  pictures  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  of 
Rimini,"  "  the  portentous  moving  of  whose  pupils" 
has  rendered  it  "  a  picture  so  blessed  and  so  full  of  ce- 
lestial inspiration,"  he  offers  the  following  prayer  to 
"the  blessed  Lady  of  Rimini:"  "0  may  this  most 
powerful  mother  of  the  Grod-Man  console  with  her  ce- 
lestial glance  so  many  of  her  children  who  will  seek 
in  her  maternal  heart  the  fountain  of  so  many  graces, 
and  may  she  in  so  many  others  also,  who,  bathed  in 
the  blood  of  her  Son,  still  obstinately  refuse  to  call  her 
their  mother,  work  not  the  less  rare  prodigy  of  opening 
their  eyes."  This  letter  should  be  preserved  in  every 
museum  of  the  world  as  a  fair  specimen  of  the  litera- 
ture of  the  Roman  priesthood — of  the  progress  of  the 
Italian  mind — of  the  animus  of  papal  ecclesiastics,  and 
as  the  most  wonderful  sample  of  unadulterated  balder- 
dash which  this  age  has  produced.  With  this  famous 
letter  poor  Bedini  has  disappeared  from  view;  but 
whether  he  has  gone  to  Thebes,  or  has  taken  some 
other  route  to  Brazil,  or  whether  he  is  stirring  up  the 


BEDINI  AND  DUFF ANOTHER  CONTRAST.  163 

One  thing  known.  A  missionary.  His  errand. 

Holy  Father  to  seek  redress  for  his  "  discourteous  and 
insulting  treatment,"  which  was  sufficient  to  cause 
"  any  nation  to  descend  a  thousand  degrees  in  the  scale 
of  its  dignity,"  is  not  known.  Only  one  thing  is  cer- 
tain, we  shall  not  soon  again  see  the  like  of  Monsieur 
Archbishop  Gaetano  Bedim. 

Such  was  one  of  the  celebrated  characters  to  whom 
I  have  above  alluded.  He  came,  and  he  has  gone ; 
but  the  telling  lesson  of  his  coming  and  going  remain. 

The  other  character  by  whom  we  have  been  visited, 
and  who  has  created  no  small  excitement,  is  Alexan- 
der Duff,  a  simple,  untitled  Scotchman;  a  devoted 
Presbyterian  minister ;  for  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury a  most  successful  missionary  in  India ;  and  with 
nothing  but  his  own  high  moral  character  and  great 
eloquence  to  arrest  attention.  He  came  on  the  earnest 
entreaty  of  a  noble-hearted  merchant,*  without  any 
blood  on  his  hands,  and  simply  as  a  Gospel  minister. 
He  came  without  any  letters  from  men  of  high  name 
to  men  in  high  places.  He  needed  none.  And  from 
his  first  appearance  in  public  to  the  last,  thousands 
thronged  to  hear  him,  and  thousands  were  unable  to 
press  within  the  sound  of  his  voice.  He  had  no  masses 
to  mutter ;  his  message  to  all  was  the  simple  Gospel, 
whether  spoken  in  the  Capitol  of  the  nation,  or  upon 
the  banks  of  the  Hudson,  or  the  Ohio,  or  the  St.  Law- 
rence. He  had  no  schemes  of  darkness  to  carry  out — 
no  earthly  master  to  serve  or  to  laud.  He  would  en- 
throne Jesus  amid  the  nations  and  in  the  hearts  of  all 
men ;  and  from  New  York  to  "Washington,  and  thence 

*  George  H.  Stuart,  Esq.,  of  Philadelphia. 


164  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

An  ovation.  Anniversary  week.  A  morning  scene. 

by  Pittsburg  and  Cincinnati  to  St.  Louis,  and  thence 
by  Chicago  and  Detroit  to  and  through  the  Canadas, 
and  by  the  way  of  Boston  back  again  to  New  York,  his 
route  has  been  a  constant  ovation.  Every  where  he 
was  hailed  at  his  coming  and  blessed  at  his  departing 
by  all  good  men. 

The  last  week  of  his  sojourn  among  us  was  the  busy 
week  of  our  religious  anniversaries.  Who  that  heard 
him  at  the  Missionary  Convention,  before  the  Christian 
Union,  the  Tract  and  Bible  Societies,  before  the  Pres- 
byterian or  the  American  Board  of  Foreign  Missions, 
can  ever  forget  the  thrilling  eloquence  and  the  apostol- 
ical zeal  with  which  he  urged  the  various  tribes  of  Is- 
rael to  go  up  and  to  possess  the  land.  Nor  were  his 
words  finely  arranged  for  the  occasion,  and  elegantly 
delivered,  falling  upon  the  audience  like  snow-flakes 
upon  the  running  stream,  and  forgotten  by  speaker  and 
hearer  at  the  close  of  the  service.  They  were  words 
from  the  heart,  which  all  felt,  and  which  will  never  be 
forgotten.  They  were  nails  driven  into  a  sure  place. 
He  there  scattered  seed  broadcast  which  will  bear 
fruit  long  after  he  has  fallen  to  sleep  on  the  banks  of 
the  Ganges. 

The  morning  of  his  departure  was  one  of  thrilling 
interest.  He  was  the  guest  of  Robert  L.  Stuart,  Esq., 
who  entertained  him  and  his  friends  with  princely  hos- 
pitality. There,  surrounded  by  the  family  of  his  host, 
and  a  few  of  his  more  intimate  friends,  he  led  in  the 
morning  prayer — a  scene  never  to  be  forgotten.  After 
attending  to  a  few  items  of  business,  he  went  with  his 
friends  to  a  meeting  for  prayer  in  the  church  of  the 


BEDINI  AND  DUFF ANOTHER  CONTRAST.  165 

The  prayer-meeting.  The  crowd.  His  departure. 

Rev.  Mr.  Thomson.  The  church  was  nearly  filled  with 
ministers  and  people.  The  services  were  closed  by  Dr. 
Duff  in  a  few  simple,  sublime  words  of  farewell,  and 
with  the  benediction ;  and  such  was  the  throng  to 
shake  his  hand  in  a  responsive  farewell,  that  with  dif- 
ficulty he  could  enter  the  carriage  that  was  to  con- 
vey him  to  the  steamer.  But  the  scene  at  the  steamer 
defies  description.  The  wharf  and  the  noble  Pacific 
were  crowded  with  clergymen  and  Christians,  assem- 
bled to  bid  him  adieu.  Many  could  only  take  him  by 
the  hand,  weep,  and  pass  on.  Never  did  any  man 
leave  our  shores  so  entirely  encircled  with  Christian 
sympathy  and  affection.  All  felt  that  that  was  to  be 
a  final  adieu,  and  they  mourned  most  of  all  that  they 
should  see  his  face  no  more. 

"When  ordered  to  the  wharf  from  the  steamer,  the 
people  sought  every  point  where  they  could  catch  a 
last  glimpse  of  him.  As  the  noble  boat  slowly  but  ma- 
jestically moved  from  her  berth,  not  a  word  was  ut- 
tered. Some  held  up  a  white  handkerchief — some 
waved  a  hat;  but  not  a  word  was  uttered!  The 
swelling  emotions  of  all  forbade  applause  or  utterance. 
We  looked  as  long  as  we  could  discern  his  countenance, 
and  then  turned  away,  praying  to  Heaven  that  his  voy- 
age homeward  and  then  eastward  might  be  as  safe  and 
prosperous  as  his  visit  here  had  been  popular  and  useful. 
No  such  man  has  visited  us  since  the  days  of  Whit- 
field.  And  as,  amid  waving  hats  and  handkerchiefs, 
and  the  flowing  tears  of  many,  the  majestic  Pacific 
moved  out  from  her  dock,  many  exclaimed,  What  a 
contrast  is  this  with  the  departure  of  Bedini ! 


166  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

The  true  key-note.  A  synonym. 

Dr.  Duff  has  come  and  he  has  gone ;  and  the  telling 
lessons  of  his  coming  and  of  his  going  remain.  And 
the  coming  and  the  departure  of  these  two  men,  Be- 
dim and  Duff,  give  the  true  key-note  to  Popery  and 
Protestantism,  as  they  are  regarded  by  the  people  of 
the  United  States.  A  few  more  Bedinis  and  winking 
Madonnas  of  Rimini,  and  Popery  will  be  the  synonym 
of  absurdity. 


THE     REV.    ARCHIBALD     ALEXANDER,    D.  D.    167 

The  true  idea  of  him.  First  interview. 


THE  REV.  ARCHIBALD  ALEXANDER,  D.D. 

A    LETTER    TO    A    FRIEND. 

MY  DEAR  SIR, — The  true  idea  of  Dr.  Archibald  Alex- 
ander must  be  ever  confined  to  those  who  knew  him, 
and  who  were  capable  of  appreciating  his  character ; 
and  that  idea,  even  with  such,  like  the  idea  of  the  true 
or  the  beautiful,  is  more  easily  felt  than  expressed. 
You  ask  me  to  give  you  my  idea  of  him.  It  is  impos- 
sible for  me  to  transfer  it  to  paper  just  as  it  lies  en- 
shrined in  my  own  mind ;  but  for  the  sake  of  those 
who  never  saw  or  knew  him,  and  who  may  desire  a 
portrait  of  the  man,  I  will  make  the  attempt  to  com- 
ply with  your  request. 

My  first  sight  of  the  man  and  interview  with  him 
was  in  the  month  of  November,  1826.  My  first  feel- 
ing was  that  of  disappointment.  He  was  small  of 
stature,  rather  slender  in  person,  negligent  in  dress, 
rather  reserved  in  company,  and  with  a  voice  in  con- 
versation pitched  on  a  higher  key  than  ordinary,  and 
rather  inclining  to  a  squeak.  Having  just  passed  from 
under  the  tuition  of  Dr.  Grrifnn,  the  contrast  between 
my  past  and  future  teacher  was  too  great  not  to  be 
felt  at  the  moment.  He  placed  me,  however,  by  his 
kind  and  cordial  manner,  soon  at  ease ;  and  as  he  was 
reading  my  introductions  and  papers,  I  sought,  as  well 


168  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Appearance  described.  First  sermon.  Truly  great. 

as  I  could,  to  read  his  person  and  countenance.  I  soon 
concluded  that  his  broad  and  strongly-marked  forehead, 
his  dark  and  penetrating  eye,  his  brief  but  comprehen- 
sive questions,  his  rapid  conceptions,  meant  something ; 
and  I  left  his  room  deeply  interested  and  impressed  by 
the  interview.  On  the  next  Sabbath,  in  the  afternoon, 
I  heard  him,  for  the  first  time,  preach  in  the  oratory 
of  the  seminary.  He  spoke  sitting  in  his  chair.  He 
read  a  passage  of  Scripture,  and  then,  as  was  his  man- 
ner, raising  his  spectacles  from  his  eyes  to  his  head,  he 
commenced  talking.  His  voice  was  peculiar,  and  his 
manner  ;  his  matter  was  simple.  As  he  progressed,  I 
became  interested — absorbed.  Although  seated  in  the 
middle  of  the  room,  and  in  the  midst  of  students,  I 
thought  he  was  preaching  to  me,  and  revealing  the 
very  secrets  of  my -heart ;  and  as  his  penetrating  eye 
glanced  from  seat  to  seat,  I  instinctively  shrunk  be- 
hind the  person  that  sat  before  me,  in  order  to  avoid 
his  reading  me  through  and  through.  That  first  ser- 
mon I  have  never  forgotten.  As  a  preacher  to  the 
conscience  and  to  the  experience  of  men,  I  have  never 
known  or  read  of  his  superior.  While  under  his  in- 
structions, my  esteem  grew  into  respect,  my  respect 
into  love,  and  my  love  into  admiration  of  the  man ; 
and  my  intercourse  with  him  in  subsequent  years,  on 
more  equal  terms,  and  on  a  wider  platform  than  that 
of  a  student,  has  left  the  impression  on  my  heart,  that 
in  all  the  elements  of  true  greatness  the  Church  of 
Christ  has  had  but  few  such  ministers. 

"  What  makes  you  think  Dr.  Alexander  a  great 
man  ?"  said  rather  a  captious  minister  to  me'  one  day. 


THE    REV.  ARCHIBALD    ALEXANDER,    D.  D.    169 
A  question  and  answer.  Combinations.  Policy. 

"  That  is  a  question  I  never  thought  of,"  was  my  re- 
ply. And  the  question  was  a  natural  one  for  persons 
to  ask  who  but  occasionally  saw  him,  and  who  heard 
him  but  occasionally  preach.  He  was  not  eloquent, 
like  Chalmers  and  Robert  Hall ;  he  "was  not  learned, 
like  Bentley  and  Porson ;  he  was  not  polished  to  cold 
elegance,  like  Blair,  nor  into  crimson  gorgeousness,  like 
Melville ;  nor  was  his  a  courtly  polish  of  manner  in 
public  or  in  private,  which  often  makes  weak  men 
quite  impressive.  In  what,  then,  you  will  ask,  con- 
sisted that  emphatic  character  which  so  deeply  im- 
pressed itself  upon  all  who  ever  knew  him,  and,  in- 
deed, upon  his  age  ?  In  a  rare  combination  of  char- 
acteristics, so  nicely  blended  as  to  conceal  each  other, 
and  as  yet  to  make  an  almost  perfect  whole. 

He  was  a  man,  if  not  of  various,  of  solid  learning. 
To  this  all  his  students  and  his  works  testify.  He  was 
a  child  of  nature  in  all  his  habits ;  in  his  modes  of 
thought,  in  his  manner  of  expression,  in  his  tones  of 
voice,  in  his  gestures,  in  his  keen  wit,  in  his  occasional 
sarcasms,  in  his  very  laugh,  he  was  perfectly  natural. 
It  would  seem  as  if  the  idea  of  doing  a  thing  genteelly, 
or  according  to  rule,  or  for  effect,  was  never  before 
him.  This  was  one  of  the  highest  charms  of  his  char- 
acter. He  was  a  man  of  godly  sincerity.  He  had  no 
concealed  ends — no  hidden  plans  to  produce  future  re- 
sults. He  manifested  all  that  he  felt.  In  an  inter- 
course with  him,  of  more  or  less  frequency,  for  twenty- 
five  years,  some  of  which  was  confidential,  I  have 
never  known  him  to  advocate  policy.  His  was  the 
most  simple-hearted  piety  ;  he  read  the  Bible  like  a 
H 


170  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

His  faith.  Sympathizing  heart.  Memorable  visit. 

child,  and  he  exercised  a  simple  faith  in  all  it  taught 
and  promised.  There  was  no  effort  to  explain  away 
its  doctrines,  or  to  modify  its  principles  by  the  teach- 
ings of  philosophy,  falsely  so  called.  He  was  a  meta- 
physician, and  yet  all  the  metaphysics  and  German 
mysticism  upon  earth  weighed  not  a  feather  with  him 
against  one  simple  text  of  Scripture  fairly  interpreted. 
His  mind  and  heart  were  imbued  with  divine  truth, 
and  his  experience  of  its  power  was  rich  and  ripe.  He 
had  a  sympathizing  heart ;  no  person  ever  resorted  to 
him  in  vain  for  counsel  or  aid.  He  entered  into  your 
circumstances  and  feelings,  and  soon  felt  as  you  felt. 
Indeed,  I  have  known  his  sympathies  produce  in  him 
a  nervous  excitement,  so  as  greatly  to  interrupt  his 
comfort.  He  knew  when  to  speak  and  when  to  be 
silent.  It  was  in  the  month  of  January,  1842,  he 
came  to  my  bereaved  family  to  bury  one  of  our  chil- 
dren, the  second  taken  from  us  within  a  few  days.  He 
sat  by  my  side  without  saying  a  word  for  some  time ; 
at  length,  breaking  the  silence,  he  uttered  this  mem- 
orable expression :  "I  have  not  come  to  comfort  you, 
my  friend ;  the  Lord  only  can  comfort  you  ;"  and  again 
a  long  silence  ensued.  After  the  emotions  excited  by 
our  first  meeting  subsided,  the  conversation  became 
natural,  and  on  his  part  instructive  and  greatly  com- 
forting. He  was  a  preacher  of  the  rarest  excellence ; 
natural,  scriptural,  pungent,  experimental,  and,  at 
times,  overwhelming  in  his  application  of  truth  to  the 
saint  and  to  the  sinner.  Nor  had  he  lost  any  of  his 
interest  down  to  old  age.  The  last  address  I  ever 
heard  from  him  was  made  to  the  Synod  of  New  Jersey, 


THE    REV.   ARCHIBALD    ALEXANDER,   D.  D.    171 

Last  address.  Death.  Burial. 

at  its  meeting  in  Elizabethtown  in  1850,  and  I  never 
heard  a  better  one,  or  one  that  more  deeply  interested 
his  crowded  audience.  As  a  professor  of  theology,  he 
was  able,  discriminating,  sound  in  the  faith,  and  most 
ardently  attached  to  the  great  doctrines  of  grace ;  and 
as  a  teacher,  he  was  as  a  father  to  his  pupils.  Their 
location,  their  joys  and  their  sorrows,  their  failures  and 
successes,  seemed  all  known  to  him  ;  their  names 
seemed  ever  before  him,  and  he  never  met  them  but 
with  paternal  emotions.  His  death  was  just  like  his 
life  —  calm,  natural,  collected,  and  pleasant.  None 
would  have  it,  indeed,  otherwise.  There  was  no  pain 
of  body  —  no  anxiety  of  mind  —  no  fears  as  to  the 
Church.  His  family  was  all  around  him.  The  Synod 
of  New  Jersey  was  in  session.  His  beloved  seminary 
was  flourishing.  "  My  work,"  said  he,  "is  done,  and 
it  is  best  I  should  go  home."  And  he  went  home. 
And  the  Synod  of  New  Jersey,  and  many  ministers 
from  other  synods,  and  from  distant  places,  carried 
him  to  his  burial. 

"  The  Lord  reigneth ;  let  the  earth  rejoice." 


172  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

His  person.  Manners.  Preacher. 


REV.  SAMUEL  MILLER,  D.D. 

LAST     INTERVIEW. 

AMONG  the  most  polished,  popular,  and  learned  min- 
isters that  have  adorned  the  American  Church,  was  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Miller.  In  stature  of  the  medium 
size,  formed  with  remarkable  symmetry,  with  mild 
blue  eye,  bald  head,  high  forehead,  and  a  countenance 
remarkably  bland  and  prepossessing,  he  immediately 
commanded  the  respect  of  all  with  whom  he  came  in 
contact.  His  politeness  was  such  as  to  gain  for  him 
the  American  sobriquet  of  the  American  Chesterfield ; 
his  affability  was  such  as  to  attract  even  the  fondling 
attention  of  children ;  so  ready  was  he  in  conversation, 
and  so  full  of  anecdote,  as  to  make  him  the  attractive 
centre  of  every  circle  which  he  graced 'with  his  pres- 
ence ;  and  so  wise  and  prudent  was  he  withal,  that  his 
advice  and  counsels  were  sought  by  his  brethren  and 
by  the  churches  as  if  he  were  an  oracle.  In  his  youth 
he  was  greatly  popular  as  a  preacher,  and  down  to  the 
close  of  his  long  life  was  remarkably  solemn  and  in- 
structive. Thoroughly  evangelical  and  devotedly  pi- 
ous, his  ministrations  were  sought  beyond  those  of  al- 
most any  of  his  contemporaries.  He  was  a  man  of 
varied  learning,  of  retentive  memory ;  was  a  graceful, 
easy,  and  polished  writer,  and,  to  as  great  an  extent 
as  almost  any  man  of  his  day,  enjoyed  both  an  Amer- 
ican and  European  reputation.  He  was  a  voluminous 


DR.    MILLER LAST     INTERVIEW.  173 

Professor.  Characteristics.  Historical  Society. 

author,  an  able  controvertist,  a  fine  ecclesiastical  his- 
torian, and  an  able  and  beloved  professor  in  the  The- 
ological Seminary  at  Princeton,  from  its  foundation  to 
the  close  of  his  long  and  brilliant  life.  Dignified  with- 
out haughtiness,  condescending  without  descending, 
affable  without  garrulity,  polite  without  the  cold  cor- 
rectness which  chills,  firm  in  his  opinions  without  big- 
otry, catholic  without  any  approach  to  latitudinarian- 
ism,  and  remarkably  generous  in  all  his  sympathies, 
he  made  even  his  enemies  to  be  at  peace  with  him, 
and  embalmed  his  memory  in  the  hearts  of  all  good 
men ;  and  the  hundreds  of  students  that  enjoyed  his 
instructions  as  a  professor,  while  they  reverenced  him 
as  a  teacher,  loved  him  as  a  father. 

The  Historical  Society  of  New  Jersey  met  at  Prince- 
ton, now  a  place  of  patriotic,  and  classic,  and  sacred 
associations.  It  was  a  noble  gathering  of  men  distin- 
guished in  their  various  professions  as  jurists,  advo- 
cates, professors,  and  divines ;  and  there  was  a  most 
cordial  greeting  and  commingling  of  these  historic  as- 
sociates. All  differences  in  sentiments,  professions,  and 
politics  were  laid  aside  while  in  the  pursuit  of  the  one 
common  object  of  honoring  New  Jersey  by  collecting 
materials  for  its  history,  and  to  rescue  from  oblivion 
the  names  of  her  many  heroic  and  distinguished  sons. 

But  one  was  absent  who  had  rarely  been  absent  be- 
fore, and  who  was  one  of  the  founders  and  vice-presi- 
dents of  the  society ;  one  whose  bland  and  polished 
manners  always  attracted  regard,  and  whose  venerable 
aspect  always  deeply  impressed.  His  absence  from 
the  meeting,  and  in  the  town  of  his  residence,  excited 


174  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  scene  in  the  study.  His  appearance. 

inquiry ;  and  when  it  was  announced  that  Dr.  Miller 
was  very  seriously  sick,  there  was  in  the  meeting  a 
deep  expression  of  sorrow  and  sympathy.  It  was  sol- 
emnly felt  "by  all  that  in  those  historic  gatherings  we 
should  see  his  face  no  more. 

His  son  conveyed  to  me  a  message  from  his  father 
that  he  would  like  to  see  me  on  the  morning  of  the 
next  day,  if  convenient.  The  hour  of  our  interview 
was  fixed ;  and,  as  other  engagements  required  punc- 
tuality, I  was  there  at  the  moment. 

But,  as  the  barber  had  just  entered  the  room,  he 
was  not  quite  ready  to  see  me,  and  he  sent  request- 
ing me  to  wait  half  an  hour.  This  my  other  engage- 
ments absolutely  forbade ;  and  on  sending  him  word 
to  that  effect,  he  invited  me  to  his  room.  As  I  entered 
it,  the  picture  which  presented  itself  was  truly  impress- 
ive. The  room  was  his  library,  where  he  had  often 
counseled,  cheered,  and  instructed  me.  There,  bolster- 
ed in  a  chair,  feeble,  wan,  and  haggard,  was  my  former 
teacher  and  friend,  one  half  of  his  face  shaven,  with 
the  soap  on  the  other  half,  and  the  barber  standing  be- 
hind his  chair.  The  old  sweet  smile  of  welcome  play- 
ed upon  his  face,  and  having  received  his  kind  hand 
and  greetings,  he  requested  me  to  take  a  seat  by  his 
side.  His  message  was  a  brief  one ;  he  had  written  a 
history  of  the  Theological  Seminary  for  the  Historical 
Society  which  was  not  yet  printed,  and  he  wished  an 
unimportant  error  into  which  he  thought  he  had  fallen 
to  be  corrected ;  and  that  there  might  be  no  mistake, 
he  wished  me  to  write  it  down,  thus  showing  his  rul- 
ing passion  for  even  verbal  accuracy.  When  his  ob- 


DR.     MILLER  — LAST    INTERVIEW.          175 

The  address.  The  prayer. 

ject  in  sending  for  me  was  gained,  he  then,  in  a  most 
composed  and  intensely  solemn  manner,  thus  addressed 
me: 

"  My  dear  brother,  my  sands  are  almost  run,  and 
this  will  be,  probably,  our  last  interview  on  earth.  Our 
intercourse,  as  professor  and  pupil,  and  as  ministers, 
has  been  one  of  undiminished  affection  and  confidence. 
I  am  just  finishing  my  course ;  and  my  only  regrets 
are  that  I  have  not  served  my  precious  Master  more 
fervently,  sincerely,  and  constantly.  "Were  I  to  live 
my  life  over  again,  I  would  seek  more  than  I  have 
done  to  know  nothing  but  Christ.  The  burdens  that 
some  of  us  have  borne  in  the  Church  will  now  devolve 
upon  you  and  your  brethren ;  see  to  it  that  you  bear 
them  better  than  we  have  done,  and  with  far  greater 
consecration ;  and  as  this  will,  no  doubt,  be  our  last 
interview  here,  it  will  be  well  to  close  it  with  prayer. 
As  I  am  too  feeble  to  kneel,  you  will  excuse  me  if  I 
keep  my  chair." 

I  drew  my  chair  before  him,  and  knelt  at  his  feet. 
The  colored  barber  laid  aside  his  razor  and  brush,  and 
knelt  by  his  side.  As  he  did  not  indicate  which  of  us 
was  to  lead  in  prayer,  I  inferred,  because  of  his  feeble- 
ness, that  it  would  be  right  for  me  to  do  so ;  and  while 
seeking  to  compose  my  own  mind  and  feelings  to  the 
effort,  I  was  relieved  by  hearing  his  own  sweet,  feeble, 
melting  accents.  His  prayer  was  brief,  but  unuttera- 
bly touching  and.  impressive.  He  commenced  it  by 
thanksgiving  to  God  for  his  great  mercy  in  calling  us 
into  the  fellowship  of  the  saints,  and  then  calling  us 
into  the  ministry  of  his  Son.  He  then  gave  thanks 


176  PARISH     PENCIL  INGS. 

Fervent  supplications.  The  effect. 

that  we  ever  sustained  to  one  another  the  relation  of 
pupil  and  teacher,  and  for  our  subsequent  pleasant  in- 
tercourse as  ministers  of  the  Gospel.  He  thanked  G-od 
for  the  many  years  through  which  he  permitted  him 
to  live,  and  for  any  good  which  he  enabled  him  to  do. 
"And  now,  Lord,"  said  he,  "seeing  that  thine  aged, 
imperfect  servant  is  about  being  gathered  to  his  fa- 
thers, let  his  mantle  fall  upon  thy  young  servant,  and1 
for  more  of  the  Spirit  of  Christ  than  he  has  ever  en- 
joyed. Let  the  years  of  thy  servant  be  as  the  years 
of  his  dying  teacher  ;  let  his  ministry  be  more  devoted, 
more  holy,  more  useful;  and  when  he  comes  to  die, 
may  he  have  fewer  regrets  to  make  in  reference  to  his 
closing  ministrations.  We  are  to  meet  no  more  on 
earth ;  but  when  thy  servant  shall  follow  his  aged  fa- 
ther to  the  grave,  may  we  meet  in  heaven,  there  to  sit, 
and  shine,  and  sing  with  those  who  have  turned  many 
to  righteousness,  who  have  washed  their  robes  and 
made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb.  Amen." 
I  arose  from  my  knees,  melted  as  is  wax  before  the 
fire.  My  full  heart  sealed  my  lips.  Through  my  flow- 
ing tears  I  took  my  last  look  of  my  beloved  teacher, 
the  counselor  of  my  early  ministry,  the  friend  of  my 
ripening  years,  and  one  of  the  most  lovely  and  loved 
ministers  with  which  God  has  ever  blessed  the  Church. 
Every  thing  impressed  me :  the  library,  his  position, 
the  barber ;  his  visage,  once  full  and  fresh,  now  sallow 
and  sunken ;  his  great  feebleness,  his  faithfulness,  his 
address,  and,  above  all,  that  prayer,  never,  never  to  be 
forgotten !  He  extended  his  emaciated  hand  from  un- 
der the  white  cloth  that  draped  from  his  breast  to  his 


DR.    MILLER LAST    INTERVIEW.  177 

The  funeral  gathering.  Burial. 

knees,  and,  taking  mine,  gave  me  his  parting,  his  last 
benediction.  That  address — that  prayer— that  bless- 
ing, have  made  enduring  impressions.  It  was  the 
most  solemn  and  instructive  last  interview  of  my  life. 

When  I  next  saw  him  he  was  sleeping  in  his  coffin 
in  the  front  parlor  of  his  house,  where  he  often,  with 
distinguished  urbanity  and  hospitality,  entertained, 
instructed,  and  delighted  his  friends.  That  parlor  was 
crowded  by  distinguished  strangers,  and  by  many  of 
his  former  pupils,  who  mourned  for  him  as  for  a  fa- 
ther— for  a  father  he  was  to  them  all.  And  as  they 
passed  around  to  take  a  parting  sight  of  his  counte- 
nance, from  which  even  death  could  not  remove  its 
accustomed  placid,  benevolent  smile,  their  every  bosom 
heaved  with  intense  emotion,  their  eyes  were  suffused 
with  tears  ;  and  could  every  tongue  utter  the  emotions 
of  their  hearts,  it  would  be  hi  the  language  of  Elisha 
when  he  gazed  on  Elijah  ascending  before  him  unto 
heaven,  "  My  father,  my  father,  the  chariot  of  Israel, 
and  the  horsemen  thereof." 

His  death  was  as  calm  and  triumphant  as  his  life 
was  pure,  disinterested,  and  lovely ;  and  as  pious  men 
carried  him  to  his  burial,  and  as  we  covered  up  his  re- 
mains under  the  clods  of  the  valley,  the  prayer  arose 
at  least  from  one  heart,  "  May  I  live  the  life  of  this 
righteous  man,  and  let  my  last  end  be  like  his." 

There  are  many  scenes  in  the  life  of  Dr.  Miller  that 
memory  frequently  recalls — scenes  in  the  class-room, 
in  the  G-eneral  Assembly,  in  the  Synod  of  New  Jersey, 
in  the  pulpit,  in  the  social  party — scenes  which  occur- 
red during  the  conflicts  of  parties,  and  in  the  frank  and 

H2 


178  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

The  parting  scene  recalled. 

I 

unrestrained  intercourse  of  social  life.  In  them  all 
Dr.  Miller  was  pre-eminently  like  himself.  But  the 
scene  by  which  I  most  love  to  recall  him,  and  which 
memory  most  frequently  recalls,  is  that  parting  scene 
in  his  study.  Oh,  may  that  parting  prayer  be  an- 
swered !* 

*  Written  for  a  forthcoming  work  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Sprague. 


AN     ELDER     INDEED.  179 

A  pious  man  a  blessing.  An  elder. 


AN  ELDER  INDEED. 

A  KIND,  intelligent,  firm,  pious,  peace-making,  pray- 
erful man  is  a  great  blessing  to  a  church.  Even  when 
in  a  low  social  position,  he  grows  into  great  influence  ; 
but  when  in  the  position  to  which  education  and  wealth 
can  elevate,  he  becomes  a  pillar  in  the  Church,  and 
his  influence  is  felt  for  good  on  all  its  members  and  in- 
terests. To  a  young  pastor  he  is  a  gift  of  God.  With 
such  a  man  as  a  counselor  and  friend,  the  minister  who 
is  just  putting  on  the  harness  will  be  safely  guided 
through  many  difficult  cases ;  his  fiery  zeal  will  be  re- 
pressed— his  errors  will  be  excused — his  hours  of  de- 
spondency will  be  cheered  by  kind  interferences — he 
will  be  comforted  amid  the  discouragements  which  are 
often  so  trying  to  the  faith  of  the  youthful  embassador 
for  Christ.  Such  a  man  I  found  in  the  eldership  of 

the  Church  of  E ,  who  was  only  a  comfort  to  me 

from  the  day  of  our  first  acquaintance  until  the  day  of 
his  death.  He  was  an  elder  worthy  of  double  honor  ; 
and  the  peculiar  traits  of  his  character  are  worthy  of 
being  held  up  for  universal  imitation. 

He  was  born  in  the  year  1789,  and  before  the  com- 
munity, or  country,  had  time  to  recover  from  the  ef- 
fects of  the  war  of  the  Revolution.  Without  any  pat- 
rimony, he  was  left  an  orphan  in  his  youth,  both  his 
parents  dying  within  a  few  months  of  one  another. 


180  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Early  life.  His  positions.  Common  sense. 

He  was  thus  a  child  of  Providence  almost  from  his  in- 
fancy. In  the  town  of  Newark,  and  while  yet  a  youth, 
he  became  hopefully  pious,  under  the  ministry  of  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Griffin.  Although  nothing  like  levity  had 
ever  marked  his  conduct,  he  now  became  deeply  seri- 
ous and  thoughtful,  and  sought  to  supply  the  deficien- 
cies of  his  earlier  education  by  devoting  his  evenings 
to  study,  reading,  and  religious  things.  When  his  com- 
panions, many  of  whom  went  before  him  to  unwept 
graves,  were  out  in  carousal,  he  was  at  the  meeting  for 
prayer  or  for  conference,  or  at  home  in  his  room,  seek- 
ing to  store  his  mind  with  useful  knowledge.  This 
course  obtained  for  him  the  confidence  of  his  employ- 
ers, and  the  respect  of  all  his  companions.  Early  in 
his  married  life  he  returned  to  his  native  town,  and  be- 
came a  member  of  our  Church  in  the  year  1815,  and 
of  which,  for  thirty-eight  years,  he  has  been  a  consistent 
and  devoted  member.  For  several  years  he  followed 
his  profession  of  daily  toil.  As  he  became  known  to 
the  people,  he  won  their  confidence.  He  was  for  sev- 
eral years  an  alderman  of  the  borough,  and  a  justice 
of  the  peace,  and  a  collector  of  the  township,  and  dep- 
uty mayor.  In  the  year  1831  he  was  elected  a  ruling 
elder,  and  in  1834  a  deacon  of  the  Church,  in  both 
which  capacities  he  served  until  his  sudden  removal 
from  the  midst  of  us. 

The  leading  characteristic  of  this  man  was  common 
sense ;  and  this  went  very  far  to  supply  all  the  defects 
of  education.  It  was  apparent  in  the  formation  of  his 
opinions — in  the  expression  of  them — hi  his  plans  and 
arrangements — and  in  the  utter  absence  of  pretension. 


AN     ELDER     INDEED.  181 

Tolerant.  As  a  politician.  Gentle. 

even  when  his  influence  was  strongest.  He  weighed 
matters  and  subjects  ;  he  was  cool  and  collected ;  and 
when  his  opinions  were  formed  upon  subjects  which  he 
could  comprehend,  there  was  but  little  need  of  revising 
or  changing  them  ;  and  as  he  usually  kept  within  the 
range  of  such  subjects,  his  opinions  were  always  re- 
spected even  by  those  who  differed  from  him. 

And  while  firm  in  his  own  opinions,  he  was  remark- 
ably tolerant  of  the  opinions  of  others.  It  is  frequently 
the  case  that  men  of  narrow  education  and  strong 
sense  are  very  dogmatical;  and  when  they  acquire 
money,  offensively  arrogant.  The  very  opposite  was 
the  character  of  our  friend.  He  could  modify  his  opin- 
ions for  reasons ;  but,  while  he  tenaciously  held  his 
own,  he  was  tolerant  of  adverse  opinions ;  and  where 
conscience  was  not  interfered  with,  when  outvoted,  he 
turned  round  and  worked  with  his  brethren. 

"While  in  political  and  civil  life  he  mingled  much 
with  his  fellow-men>  he  was  an  honest  politician  and 
an  upright  magistrate.  He  was  not  of  those  who 
thought  the  country  ruined  when  his  party  did  not 
succeed,  and  who,  to  carry  their  point,  think  all  things 
fair.  He  would  rather  be  right  than  successful,  and 
in  the  use  of  honest  means  could  bear  to  be  defeated  ; 
and,  save  by  those  who  felt  themselves  condemned  by 
his  integrity,  or  defeated  by  his  influence,  we  have 
never  heard  his  civil  life  reproached.  To  the  extent 
of  our  knowledge,  it  is  without  spot. 

It  is  very  rarely  that  we  see  gentleness  and  firmness 
combined  to  the  same  extent  as  they  were  in  his  case. 
His  tones,  especially  among  the  afflicted,  were  gentle 


182  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

Calmness.  Firmness.  Fatherless  and  widows. 

as  those  of  woman.  So  great  was  his  sympathy  as 
often  to  overcome  him.  He  was  pleasant  and  accom- 
modating to  a  remarkable  degree.  It  seemed  almost 
impossible  to  excite  him  to  passion ;  and  what  others 
would  interpret  as  an  insult,  he  would  pleasantly  turn 
off  with  a  smile.  These  are  usually  the  characteristics 
of  a  person  easily  decoyed  from  his  object  and  turned 
from  his  purpose ;  but  in  the  case  of  our  friend,  they 
were  connected  with  a  firmness  of  purpose  which  yield- 
ed not.  You  might  abuse  or  flatter,  but  he  was  firm. 
Like  the  well-constructed  arch,  the  heavier  the  press- 
ure, the  firmer  he  became.  You  might  reason,  or 
scold,  or  abuse,  he  might  or  might  not  be  silent ;  and 
when  you  hoped  you  had  moved  him,  he  was  only 
drawing  reasons  from  your  conduct  for  increased  firm- 
ness. Such  a  man  in  this  shuffling  age,  when  men 
have  sails  to  catch  all  winds,  is  as  a  stream  of  water 
in  the  desert,  as  the  shadow  of  a  great  rock  in  a  weary 
land.  I  always  knew  just  where  to  find  him.  He 
was  a  true  man,  and  as  kind  as  true. 

His  sympathy  for  the  fatherless  and  widow  in  their 
affliction  was  a  leading  trait  of  his  character,  and  in 
his  case  seemed  to  be  a  special  gift  of  Grod.  How 
many  a  widow  have  I  heard  bless  him ;  and  to  how 
many  an  orphan  has  he  been  a  father  !  His  own  house 
has  been  the  home  of  the  orphan,  and  who,  because  of 
his  kindness,  never  knew  the  want  of  a  father.  He 
did  not  wait  to  be  sought  for  by  the  widow,  he  sought 
them  out.  He  strove  to  infuse  the  comforts  of  religion 
into  their  desolate  hearts ;  and,  when  necessary,  with 
true  liberality,  to  supply  their  temporal  wants  from  his 


AN     ELDER    INDEED.  183 

As  an  elder.  Simple  piety. 

own  purse.  He  had  his  regular  rounds  among  these, 
which  were  seldom  neglected,  until  the  hand  of  disease 
was  laid  upon  him.  It  was  a  part  of  his  religion  to 
visit  the  fatherless  and  widows  in  their  affliction,  as 
well  as  to  keep  himself  unspotted  from  the  world. 

As  an  elder  of  the  Church,  but  few,  save  his  pastor, 
can  estimate  his  worth.  His  uniform  kindness,  his 
practical  wisdom,  his  gentleness  toward  the  erring,  his 
firmness  when  requisite,  his  peculiar  talent  as  a  peace- 
maker between  brethren,  his  aptness  in  family  visita- 
tion, his  intelligent  firmness  as  a  Presbyterian,  his  thor- 
ough, though  quiet  opposition  to  all  fanaticism  and 
folly,  entitled  him  to  the  double  honor  of  those  who 
rule  well .  Within  the  last  twenty-five  years  the  Church 
has  been  more  disturbed  with  new  doctrines  and  meas- 
ures, with  new  and  ephemeral  modes  of  reformation, 
than  for  a  century  previous ;  and  in  reference  to  all 
this  class  of  things,  I  know  not  of  a  solitary  instance 
in  which  he  swerved  for  a  moment  from  the  good  old 
ways.  We  have  had  our  own  differences  of  opinion  as 
to  the  propriety  of  certain  measures  among  ourselves, 
but  I  have  never  known  him  for  a  moment  to  set  up 
his  will  against  those  of  his  brethren,  or  to  turn  for  a 
moment  from  the  course  which  promised  to  promote 
the  future  welfare  of  the  Church.  He  was  just  such 
an  elder  as  would  be  a  comfort  to  any  minister,  and  a 
blessing  to  any  Church. 

But,  after  all,  his  simple,  unfeigned  piety  was  the 
basis  of  his  entire  character.  He  remembered  his 
Creator  in  the  days  of  his  youth ;  and  he  grew  up  from 
the  blade  to  the  ear,  and  onward  to  the  full  corn  in  the 


184  PARISH     P  E  N  C  I  L  I  N  G  S. 

Prayerful  spirit.  The  painful  request.  Assurance. 

ear.  His  views  of  truth  were  settled ;  lie  believed 
truth  to  practice  it ;  he  had  a  full  conception  of  what 
a  profession  of  Christianity  required,  and  he  sought  to 
live  accordingly.  He  was  a  man  of  prayer  in  private, 
in  his  family,  in  public.  None  could  hear  him  pray 
without  feeling  that  the  secret  of  the  Lord  was  with 
him;  and  never  was  I  more  affected  than  when,  after 
the  paralysis  which  unfitted  him  for  many  duties  for 
two  or  three  years,  he  said  to  me,  "  Do  not  call  upon 
me  to  pray ;  I  have  the  heart  to  pray,  but  my  memory 
fails,  and  the  Lord  has  taken  away  my  tongue." 

His  religious  experience  was  in  full  keeping  with 
his  life.  It  was  free  from  all  sudden  alternations.  It 
was  never  up  to  burning  heat,  nor  down  to  the  freez- 
ing point.  His  growth  in  grace  was  steady,  and, 
like  many  living  springs,  very  much  unaffected  by 
spiritual  drought  or  by  spiritual  showers.  For  years 
that  are  past  he  possessed  the  comfort  of  the  full  as- 
surance of  faith ;  and  while  he  mourned  over  his  sins, 
he  could  say,  "  I  know  in  whom  I  have  believed,  and 
that  he  will  keep  that  which  I  have  committed  unto 
him." 

When  death  came,  it  found  him  as  a  shock  of  corn 
fully  ripe  to  be  gathered  into  the  garner.  He  was 
walking  about  the  streets  in  the  morning ;  he  returned 
to  the  sick-bed  of  his  dying  wife,  with  whom  he  had 
a  deeply  solemn  interview,  which  proved  to  be  their 
last  on  earth ;  deeply  affected,  he  went  to  his  bed  to 
rest,  where  he  was  seized  with  apoplexy  before  noon, 
and  without  struggle,  and  probably  without  feeling  the 
pain  of  dying,  a  little  after  the  setting  of  the  evening's 


AN     ELDER     INDEED.  185 

Death.  A  hero.  Heroes  in  all  places. 

sun,  the  silver  cord  was  loosed,  and  the  spirit  returned 
to  the  Grod  that  gave  it. 

"  So  fades  a  summer  cloud  away,' 

So  sinks  the  gale  when  storms  are  o'er ; 
So  gently  shuts  the  eye  of  day, 
So  dies  a  wave  along  the  shore." 

This  elder  was  not  a  great  man,  nor  a  polished  man, 
nor  a  learned  man.  He  was  never  ambitious  of  char- 
acter which  he  did  not  possess.  He  went  in  and  out 
as  a  plain,  simple,  unostentatious  citizen,  as  he  was. 
There  was  nothing  in  his  dress,  or  address,  or  appear- 
ance, to  arrest  the  attention  of  the  stranger.  We  claim 
for  him  no  perfection,  nor  do  we  hold  the  doctrine.  But 
his  moral  principles  were  strong;  his  moral  virtues- 
were  of  the  highest  order ;  his  piety  was  deep  and  af- 
fectionate ;  and  attachment  to  the  right  and  true  was 
the  law  of  his  life.  He  was  a  hero  in  his  way  and 
place.  And  having  filled  the  orbit  in  which  he  moved 
with  light ;  having  performed  honestly  and  manfully  the 
duties  which  were  given  him  to  do ;  having  fought  the 
good  fight  of  faith  for  nearly  fifty  years  without  faint- 
ing or  weariness,  and  having  gone  to  the  grave  with- 
out spot  or  blemish  upon  his  name,  we  are  as  willing 
to  crown  him  as  if  he  fell  a  general  on  the  victorious 
field  of  battle — as  if,  like  Adams,  Calhoun,  or  Clay,  he 
died  in  his  senatorial  robes.  There  are  heroes  in  low 
places  as  in  high,  in  private  as  in  public  life ;  and  it 
is  promotive  of  the  moral  virtues  in  all  the  ranks  of 
life,  that  wherever  a  true  hero  falls,  willing  hands  should 
be  always  found  ready  to  bind  the  victor's  wreath  upon 
his  brow. 


186  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

Piety  of  woman.  Her  place  in  Jewish  history. 


MARY  MAGDALENE. 

THE  Bible  contains  many  brilliant  narratives  of  the 
piety  and  of  the  faith  of  woman.  If  first  in  transgres- 
sion, she  has  never  been  last  in  the  works  of  faith  and 
labor  of  love.  Nobly  has  she  labored  under  both  dis- 
pensations, and  in  every  age,  to  erase  from  the  earth 
the  traces  of  the  curse  of  which  she  was  to  so  great  a 
degree  the  cause.  In  that  brilliant  chapter  of  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  in  which  Paul  so  eloquently 
depicts  the  power  of  faith,  we  find  the  name  of  Sarah 
on  the  same  roll  with  that  of  Enoch,  Noah,  and  Abra- 
ham ;  and  that  of  Rahab  with  those  of  Moses,  and  Jo- 
seph, and  Joshua,  and  Gideon,  and  Samuel,  and  David. 
And  may  it  not  be  that  it  was  in  a  wise  deference  to 
Eastern  feeling  as  to  woman  that  he  omits  the  names 
of  Rachel,  and  Jochebed,  and  Hannah,  and  Esther,  and 
Ruth,  and  Deborah,  and  Abigail,  and  the  women  of 
Shunem,  when  he  crowds  into  such  a  glorious  galaxy 
the  names  of  so  many  men,  whose  faith  was  no  more 
illustrious  than  theirs  ?  "Woman  illustrates  every  page 
of  Jewish  history  by  her  courage,  fortitude,  and  faith. 

And  such  also  is  the  fact  as  to  the  New  Testament 
history.  Commencing  with  Mary,  the  mother  of  our 
Lord,  what  a  remarkable  display  of  faith,  fidelity,  and 
heroic  devotion  do  we  find  in  the  females  connected 


MARY     MAGDALENE.  187 

Woman  in  the  New  Testament.  Mary  Magdalene. 

with  the  history  of  Christ  and  his  apostles,  and  with  the 
collecting  and  planting  of  the  first  churches !  Every 
where  kind  and  attentive  to  the  Savior ;  every  where 
sitting  under  his  teaching ;  along  the  whole  track  of 
his  public  ministry  seeking  from  him  cures  for  their 
sick  with  characteristic  earnestness  ;  last  at  the  cross, 
first  at  the  grave ;  every  where  the  helpers  of  the 
apostles  in  their  arduous  labors,  the  Christian  Scrip- 
tures bear  the  most  emphatic  testimony  to  the  heroism 
of  their  faith.  And,  perhaps,  in  all  the  Bible  there  is 
not  a  woman  whose  faith  and  piety  shine  more  brightly 
than  do  those  of  Mary  Magdalene,  whose  simple  and 
beautiful  history,  as  drawn  by  the  "beloved  disciple," 
we  have  in  the  20th  chapter  of  the  Grospel  of  St.  John. 

To  a  brief  history  of  this  woman,  and  a  brief  state- 
ment of  the  lessons  which  it  teaches,  we  now  invite 
the  attention  of  our  readers. 

She  is  called  Magdalene,  because  she  resided  in  the 
little  village  of  Magdala,  which  lay  on  the  shore  of  the 
Sea  of  Tiberias,  where,  it  is  said,  she  was  a  plaiter  of 
hair  for  vain  and  wicked  women.  So  great  a  sinner 
was  she,  that  she  is  said  to  have  been  possessed  by 
"  seven  devils,"  which  were  cast  out  by  the  Savior. 
This  some  interpret  literally ;  others  figuratively,  as 
expressive  of  her  great  sinfulness  and  forgiveness.  She 
was  doubtless  the  woman  who,  in  the  house  of  Simon, 
the  Pharisee,  washed  the  feet  of  Jesus  with  her  tears, 
and  wiped  them  with  the  hair  of  her  head.  Simon 
thought  that  the  admission  of  her  to  such  familiarity 
was  an  evidence  either  that  the  Savior  knew  not  her 
character,  or  that  he  was  not  sufficiently  strict  in  his 


188  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Attendance  on  Christ.  Embalming.  Love. 

conduct.  This  was  the  occasion  of  the  inimitable  par- 
able of  the  "  two  debtors."  She  was  forgiven  much, 
and  she  loved  much.  After  her  conversion,  she  attend- 
ed him  on  his  journeys,  and  ministered  to  him  of  her 
substance.  She  attended  him  on  his  last  journey  from 
Galilee  to  Jerusalem,  and  was  a  deeply-affected  wit- 
ness of  all  the  scenes  connected  with  his  death.  She 
was  among  the  disciples  who  thronged  the  hall  of  the 
High  Priest  during  his  trial,  and  her  heart  melted,  like 
wax  before  the  flame,  when  she  heard  the  Holy  One 
condemned  to  death  on  perjured  testimony.  She  fol- 
lowed him  to  the  cross ;  and  as  she  looked  upon  the 
dying  struggle,  and  heard  the  words,  "  It  is  finished," 
uttered  by  his  parched  and  quivering,  lips,  and  saw  him 
bow  his  head  and  give  up  the  ghost,  her  love  was  kin- 
dled into  a  flame. 

The  crucifixion  scene  is  over.  The  tragedy  of  Cal- 
vary closes  amid  the  hiding  of  the  light  of  the  sun,  and 
the  convulsions  of  nature,  and  the  coming  forth  of  the 
dead  !  Jesus  died  the  just  for  the  unjust ;  and  while 
his  body  is  taken  in  one  direction  for  its  burial,  Mary 
retires  in  another,  to  prepare  and  mix  spices  and  oint- 
ments for  embalming  it.  She  poured  precious  oint- 
ment on  him  while  living;  he  is  not  to  be  forgotten 
now  that  he  is  dead.  "  Many  waters  can  not  quench 
love,  neither  can  the  floods  drown  it." 

Men  can  not  tell  us  what  it  is  to  love ;  they  might 
as  well  attempt  to  paint  a  sound.  It  is  an  affection 
which  demonstrates  its  own  power,  and  the  force  of 
that  demonstration  is  only  known  by  those  in  whose 
bosom  the  affection  lives.  Love  knows  no  fear;  no 


MARY     MAGDALENE.  189 

Love  of  woman,  '  Visit  to  the  grave.  The  disciples. 

barrier  can  arrest  it ;  through  floods  and  flames  it  will 
press  its  way  in  the  pursuit  of  its  object.  And  the 
love  of  woman  is  proverbially  strong ;  that  of  Mary 
bore  her  above  all  fear.  The  sepulchre  where  Jesus 
was  laid  was  removed  at  some  distance  from  the  city, 
and,  regardless  of  all  danger,  she  went  forth  while  it 
was  yet  dark,  on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  to  his  grave. 
Alone  she  went  through  the  silent  streets  to  a  spot  par- 
ticularly gloomy,  and  where  even  the  philosophic  mind 
is  filled  with  fairy  visions,  and  to  a  grave  guarded  by 
Roman  soldiers,  and  that  she  might  find  in  the  place 
of  the  dead  the  body  of  her  Lord.  Finding  the  stone 
removed  from  the  sepulchre,  and  the  body  of  Jesus  not 
there,  overwhelmed  with  sorrow,  she  ran  to  his  disci- 
ples, saying,  "  They  have  taken  away  the  Lord,  and 
we  know  not  where  they  have  laid  him."  How  often 
do  we  sorrow  over  that  which  should  be  a  cause  of 
joy !  The  disciples,  excited  by  the  narrative,  run  to 
the  sepulchre,  and  find  the  fact  to  be  as  stated  by 
Mary.  Peter  seems,  at  first,  to  have  doubted ;  "  for 
as  yet  they  knew  not  the  Scriptures,  that  he  must  rise 
from  the  dead."  And  having  satisfied  themselves  that 
Jesus  was  risen,  and  having  now  received  the  doctrine 
of  the  resurrection  as  actually  achieved,  "  the  disciples 
went  again  to  their  own  homes." 

But  how  different  is  the  conduct  of  Mary  !  Moved 
by  stronger  affection,  she  remained  behind,  chained  to 
the  spot  where  her  Savior  had  lam.  The  picture,  as 
drawn  by  the  beloved  disciple,  is  touching  in  the  ex- 
treme :  "  She  stood  without  at  the  sepulchre,  weep- 
ing ;  and  as  she  wept,  she  stooped  down  and  looked 


190  PARISH    PENCILING  S. 

A  picture.  The  angels.  The  Master. 

into  the  sepulchre."  What  a  subject  for  the  pencil  of 
an  Angelo  !  The  beloved  of  her  soul  was  crucified,  and 
her  heart  was  broken.  There  was  the  spot  where  had 
lain  his  bleeding  and  torn  body ;  the  very  spot  had  a 
charm  for  her.  Others  might  go  away,  and  amid 
other  scenes  and  duties  find  a  balm  for  their  wounded 
spirits ;  but  to  Mary  the  very  grave  of  her  Lord  was 
dear ;  and  thinking  that,  after  all,  his  body  might  be 
there,  she  stooped  down  and  looked  into  it.  Although 
deserted  by  others,  and  surrounded  by  dangers  calcu- 
lated to  excite  her  timid  heart,  yet  so  completely  was 
she  occupied  by  sorrows  for  her  Savior  as  to  be  regard- 
less of  all  else. 

While  thus  weeping,  stooping,  desponding,  angelic 
voices  address  her  from  the  sepulchre,  saying,  "  Wom- 
an, why  weepest  thou  ?"  "  Because  they  have  taken 
away  my  Lord,  and  I  know  not  where  they  have  laid 
him,"  was  the  prompt  and  sorrowing  reply.  When 
speaking  to  the  disciples,  it  was  "  the  Lord ;"  now  it  is 
"  my  Lord."  Love  is  appropriating.  Turning  round, 
she  sees  in  the  gray  twilight  of  the  morning  the  out- 
lines of  a  man,  who  asks,  in  rapid  succession,  "  Woman, 
why  weepest  thou  ?  whom  seekest  thou  ?"  Supposing 
him  to  be  the  gardener,  she  thus  passionately  address- 
es him :  "  Sir,  if  thou  have  borne  him  hence,  tell  me 
where  thou  hast  laid  him,  and  I  will  take  him  away." 
Jesus  said  unto  her,  "  Mary."  Startled  into  ecstasy 
by  the  well-known  voice,  and  turning  round,  she  rushes 
toward  him,  crying  out,  "  Rabboni,"  which  is  to  say, 
"  Master."  What  a  subject,  again,  for  the  pencil  of 
an  Angelo !  Forbidding  her  to  touch  him,  and  having 


MARY     MAGDALENE.  191 

Sent  with  a  message.  Effect  of  grace.  Difficult  questions. 

announced  to  her  his  resurrection,  he  sent  her  to  his 
disciples  with  this  message  :  "  Go  to  my  brethren,  and 
say  unto  them,  I  ascend  unto  my  Father,  and  your 
Father — to  my  God,  and  your  God."  And  with  her 
tears  all  wiped  away,  and  her  heart  relieved  from  the 
weight  of  its  sorrows,  and  her  countenance  radiant 
with  commingling  joy  and  hope,  she  announced  to  the 
disciples  that  she  had  seen  the  Lord,  and  told  them  the 
things  that  he  had  spoken  to  her. 

We  shall  now  state  a  few  of  the  lessons  taught  by 
this  remarkable  narrative  of  this  most  interesting 
woman. 

1.  It  teaches  us  the  true  effect  of  saving  grace  upon 
the  conduct.  By  saving  grace  we  mean  the  work  of 
the  Spirit  renewing  the  soul  after  the  image  of  God. 
This  work  of  the  Spirit  not  only  enlightens  the  under- 
standing, so  that  spiritual  things  are  seen  in  a  true 
light,  but  it  also  gives  the  will  and  the  affections  an 
irresistible  inclination  toward  them.  It  is  above  na- 
ture— it  is  above  moral  suasion — it  is  the  effect  of  the 
power  which  created  the  world. 

Connected  with  this  subject  are  many  questions  dif- 
ficult of  solution.  What  is  the  spirit  of  man  ?  How 
does  God  act  upon  spirit  ?  In  what  does  the  change 
consist  ?  Christ  thus  answers  these  and  similar  ques- 
tions :  "  The  wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth,  and  thou 
nearest  the  sound  thereof,  but  canst  not  tell  whence  it 
cometh  or  whither  it  goeth ;  so  is  every  one  that  is 
born  of  the  Spirit ;"  that  is,  you  may  be  ignorant  as 
to  the  causes  and  course  of  the  winds,  but  you  see 
their  effects.  They  move  the  trees  of  the  forest — they 


192  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Results  seen.  The  great  change.  Many  such. 

lash  the  ocean  into  tempest.  The  evidences  of  their 
power  are  not  unfrequently  strown  over  earth  and 
ocean.  And  such  is  the  fact  as  to  the  Divine  influ- 
ence upon  the  soul.  We  may  not  understand  the 
method  of  its  operation,  but  the  results  are  read  of  all 
men. 

How  strongly  is  all  this  illustrated  in  the  case  of 
Mary !  She  is  described  as  a  poor  woman,  in  the  low- 
est condition  of  her  sex,  whose  sins  were  of  a  crimson 
dye — as  bodily  and  spiritually  under  the  dominion  of 
Satan.  But  the  possessed  of  seven  devils  is  made  a 
subject  of  grace  and  an  heir  of  glory ;  and  how  great 
the  change  in  her  conduct!  With  the  entire  devotion 
of  her  whole  heart  she  attended  upon  her  Lord.  His 
feet  she  washed  with  her  mingling  tears  of  pity  and 
joy,  and  wiped  them  with  the  hair  of  her  head,  which 
is  the  glory  of  woman.  Nor  did  her  affection  for  him 
abate  when  he  was  accused  as  a  malefactor  —  when 
condemned  for  blasphemy  —  when  crucified  between 
two  thieves.  She  was  last  at  the  cross ;  and  having 
prepared  spices  for  his  embalming,  she  was  first  at  his 
grave,  to  perform  this  last  act  of  affection.  The  dark- 
ness of  the  night  — the  danger  of  the  way — the  dis- 
tance from  the  city — the  loneliness  of  the  place — the 
presence  of  a  rude  soldiery  excited  no  fear.  No  dan- 
ger could  deter  her  from  manifesting  her  love  for  her 
Lord.  And  such,  in  kind,  is  the  effect  of  saving  grace 
upon  all  hearts.  And  multitudes  of  her  sex,  in  every 
age,  have  manifested  a  devotion  to  the  Savior  of  men 
only  less  conspicuous  than  that  of  Mary,  because  less 
known. 


MARY     MAGDALENE.  193 

Simple  faith  honored.  Never  failed. 

2.  It  teaches  us  the  honor  with  which  God  crowns 
the  exercises  of  simple  faith.  Faith  is  the  saving 
grace.  This  truth  can  not  be  too  often  asserted  in  a 
world  where  the  human  heart  so  universally  inclines 
to  the  doctrine  of  merit.  "  He  that  belie veth  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  saved ;"  and  every  instance 
of  the  simple  exercise  of  faith  should  be  held  forth  for 
universal  instruction  and  imitation. 

The  case  of  Mary  is  a  beautiful  illustration  of  it. 
Her  sins  were  great,  but  they  were  freely  forgiven; 
and  from  the  hour  of  her  forgiveness  until  she  passes 
from  our  view,  her  simple  faith  is  conspicuous.  She 
followed  her  Savior  through  Judea,  sitting  at  his  feet 
whenever  he  spoke  the  words  of  truth — his  instructions 
falling  upon  her  soul  as  the  rain  upon  the  mown  grass. 
"When  her  Lord  was  accused  as  a  malefactor,  her  faith 
never  wavered.  She  followed  him  to  the  hall  of  Pilate 
and  to  the  summit  of  Calvary  ;  and  when  the  last  deep 
groan  by  which  his  sufferings  were*  brought  to  a  term- 
ination escaped  his  lips,  and  his  head  bowed  in  death, 
her  faith  failed  not.  When  the  unbelieving  Jews  wag- 
ged their  heads  in  derision — when  the  sorrowing  dis- 
ciples went  away,  not  knowing  yet  but  that  his  death 
was  the  end  of  all  they  hoped  for  through  him,  she 
stood  at  a  distance  gazing  upon  the  scene,  mourning, 
but  yet  believing.  There  she  stood  until  Joseph  took 
his  body  from  the  cross  ;  nor  did  she  then  go  away. 
She  followed  in  the  procession  to  the  new-made  tomb 
in  the  rock,  and  saw  his  body  wrapped  in  clean  linen 
and  laid  away  to  its  burial.  While  these  last  offices 
were  performing,  she,  with  the  other  Mary,  sat  over 

I 


194  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Faith  honored.  A  monument  of  faith. 

against  the  sepulchre,  weeping,  but  yet  believing. 
"Waiting  and  worshiping  through  the  Sabbath,  she 
hastened  to  the  tomb  while  it  was  yet  dark,  on  the 
morning  of  the  first  day  of  the  week,  for  the  purpose 
of  embalming  him,  undismayed  by  all  the  dangers  to 
which  she  was  exposed.  Oh  Mary,  great  was  thy 
faith ! 

And  behold  the  way  in  which  God  honors  it.  As 
she  approached  the  sepulchre,  she  found  the  great 
stone  rolled  away  from  its  mouth.  Here  is  one  diffi- 
culty removed.  Looking  in  vain  for  her  Lord,  angels 
announce  to  her  his  resurrection.  This  glorious  truth 
she  is  first  honored  in  knowing ;  she  first  announces  it 
to  his  disciples  !  and  she  is  honored  with  the  first  sight 
of  her  risen  Lord !  It  is  expressly  recorded  that  "  he 
appeared  first  to  Mary  Magdalene."  What  the  eye 
and  ear  of  Jesus  had  alone  seen  and  heard,  he  would 
have  recorded  to  the  end  of  the  world ;  and  he  would 
exhibit,  in  this  woman,  his  peculiar  regard  for  the  ex- 
ercise of  simple  faith  under  the  most  trying  circum- 
stances. And  to  all  succeeding  generations  Mary  will 
stand  forth  a  monument  of  the  blessedness  of  those 
who,  amid  the  trials  and  discouragements  of  the  pres- 
ent mortal  state,  exercise  a  simple  implicit  trust  in  the 
Lord. 

The  Lord  is  nigh  to  all  those  that  call  upon  him. 
He  has  graciously  promised  to  be  found  of  all  those 
that  seek  him  aright.  Though  at  all  times  nigh  to 
those  that  seek  him,  he  is  often  hidden  from  them  be- 
hind some  providential  dispensation ;  but  he  will  soon 
reveal  himself,  and  teach  us,  as  he  did  Mary,  that  they 


MARY     MAGDALENE.  195 

Weeping  for  a  night.  True  way  to  seek  Christ. 

who  truly  seek  him  shall  not  seek  him  in  vain.  Clouds 
can  not  always  obscure  the  sun.  The  anger  of  a  kind 
father  does  not  always  burn.  Christ  is  ever  more 
ready  to  be  found  of  his  people  than  they  are  to  seek 
him.  See  him  meeting  his  disciples  at  the  sea  when 
weary  with  rowing;  see  him  meeting  with  Daniel 
when  weeping  and  fasting,  and  with  John  when  an 
exile  on  Patmos.  Mary  only  sought  the  dead  body  of 
her  Lord,  but  she  found  him  alive  for  evermore,  to  the 
joy  and  rejoicing  of  her  soul !  What  encouragements 
to  seek  the  Lord  until  we  find !  Weeping  may  con- 
tinue for  a  night,  but  joy  will  come  in  the  morning. 

3.  It  teaches  us  the  true  way  of  seeking  Christ. 
When  found  of  Mary,  Christ  had  but  just  risen ;  he 
had  not  yet  ascended.  With  all  the  ardor  of  her  soul, 
she  ran  to  embrace  him ;  but  he  repels  her  with  what 
appears,  at  first  sight,  an  unwonted  and  unnecessary 
abruptness,  saying  to  her,  "  Touch  me  not."  What 
does  this  mean  ?  Why  thus  chill  the  flow  of  the  warm 
current  of  her  affections  ?  Mary,  perhaps,  felt  that  it 
was  enough  for  her  to  find  her  risen  Lord,  and  was 
about  casting  herself  at  his  feet,  and  clinging  to  his 
mere  bodily  presence.  But  he  means  to  say  to  her, 
"  Mary,  there  is  something  better  than  my  bodily  pres- 
ence ;  you  must  look  to  a  crucified,  risen,  ascended 
Savior,  and  to  a  sanctifying  Spirit ;  and  go  tell  my 
brethren  that  I  am  risen  from  the  dead  —  that  I  am 
alive  for  evermore."  This  we  may  regard  as  the  mean- 
ing of  our  Lord  until  we  are  furnished  with  a  better. 

How  exactly  do  Satan,  and  superstition,  and  error 
teach  the  opposite  of  all  this.  They  endeavor  to  at- 


196  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Devices  of  Satan.  What  avails.  Human  glory. 

tract  the  mind  and  the  heart  from  the  spiritual  to  the 
visible  —  from  the  work  of  Christ  to  the  worship  of 
his  pictures  and  bowing  at  his  name— from  heaven  to 
earth — from  the  truth  to  the  form  by  which  it  is  ex- 
pressed. Men  are  fond  of  gods  which  they  can  see ; 
and  hence  Satan  is  ever  dressing  up  something  in 
gaudy  trappings,  and  covering  it  with  gewgaws,  and 
calling  it  by  a  religious  name,  and  is  ever  saying  to 
our  sensual  race,  "These  be  thy  gods,  0  Israel."  But 
of  his  devices  in  these  respects  we  should  not  be  igno- 
rant. To  seek  Christ  aright,  we  must  not  look  for  him 
in  the  tomb,  nor  yet  upon  the  cross,  nor  yet  in  the 
flesh.  We  must  seek  him  in  his  word,  and  rest  upon 
his  finished  work,  and  trust  to  his  all-prevalent  inter- 
cession. Many,  like  Mary,  would  cling  to  his  person 
and  presence,  but  his  work  for  us,  and  the  work  of  his 
Spirit  in  us,  alone  avail  in  our  behalf  as  sinners. 

In  every  age,  the  character  of  a  consummate  gen- 
eral and  victorious  leader  of  armies  has  been  the  glory 
of  man.  To  return  from  the  field  of  battle,  wearing 
the  wreath  of  victory,  has  been  considered  immortality 
sufficient ;  and  those  who  have  attained  this  character 
have  reveled  amid  the  adorations  of  the  multitude. 
Such  was  an  Alexander,  who,  after  conquering  the 
world,  sighed  for  other  worlds  to  conquer ;  such  was  a 
Csesar,  who,  after  subduing  the  enemies  of  his  coun- 
try, enslaved  Rome ;  such  was  a  Bonaparte, 

"  The  man  of  thousand  thrones, 
Who  strewed  our  earth  with  hostile  bones," 

and  who,  by  the  splendor  and  rapidity  of  his  achieve- 
ments, filled  the  world  with  his  fame.  The  glory  of 


MARY    MAGDALENE.  197 

Grace  the  glory  of  woman. 

influencing  men  by  the  powers  of  eloquence,  in  the 
senate  house,  the  legislative  hall,  or  in  the  assemblies 
of  the  people,  has  been  intensely  sought  by  man ;  and 
a  few  have  attained  it.  The  names  of  a  Demosthenes 
and  a  Cicero  have  become  household  words.  The  one 
awoke  Greece  to  concert  against  Philip;  the  other 
saved  his  country  from  the  arts  of  a  Catiline ;  and  the 
forensic  fame  of  a  Burke,  a  Pitt,  a  Fox,  a  Henry,  a 
Pinckney,  has  gone  out  into  all  the  earth.  So  the  pos- 
session of  wealth,  because  of  the  pomp  and  circum- 
stances which  it  sustains,  has  been  the  glory  of  man ; 
and  to  obtain  it,  men  have  dared  all  dangers,  and  have 
searched  all  climes.  But  grace  is  the  glory  of  woman. 
A  true  and  fervent  faith  is  her  crown  of  glory.  These 
raised  Mary  from  the  lowest  position  of  her  sex  to  the 
very  highest  to  which  mortals  ever  attain.  "Without 
these,  all  the  other  accomplishments  of  woman  are  but 
"  as  the  flower  of  the  grass." 


198  PARISH     PENCIL  INGS. 

Fears  as  to  popery.  Florida.  Mississippi. 


POPERY  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES.* 

WHEN  we  regard  all  its  antecedents,  it  is  no  wonder 
that  many  of  the  good  people  of  Britain  indulge  fears 
as  to  the  ultimate  prevalence  of  popery  in  this  land. 
Maryland,  one  of  our  oldest  states,  was  settled  by  pa- 
pists ;  Lord  Baltimore,  its  proprietor,  was  a  papist ;  its 
first  colonists  were  papists,  who  fled  thither  from  En- 
gland in  1633,  in  order  to  escape  the  severity  with 
which  they  were  treated.  Papists  were  thus  to  Mary- 
land what  the  Puritans  were  to  New  England,  and  had 
precisely  the  same  opportunity  to  impress  and  to  extend 
their  opinions. 

Florida,  from  its  settlement  by  the  Spaniards  until 
its  cession  to  the  United  States  in  1820,  save  a  few 
years  of  British  rule,  was  entirely  under  papal  influ- 
ence. There  the  Spaniards  and  their  priests  had  every 
thing  at  their  will  as  completely  as  in  the  neighboring 
island  of  Cuba. 

The  whole  country  west  of  the  Mississippi,  now  em- 
bracing the  states  of  Louisiana,  Arkansas,  and  Mis- 
souri, extending  north  to  Canada,  belonged  originally 
to  the  French,  and  was  settled  by  them.  Indeed,  the 
first  Europeans  that  trod  those  vast  regions  were  Jesuit 
missionaries,  and  never  had  papal  priests  a  fairer  op- 

*  Written  for  "  The  News  of  the  Churches,"  a  monthly  paper  of 
great  interest,  published  in  Edinburgh. 


POPERY     IN     THE     UNITED     STATES.         199 
Northern  frontier.  Texas  and  California.  Immigration. 

portunity  of  laying  deep  and  broad  the  foundations  of 
their  system. 

The  whole  of  our  northern  frontier,  from  the  mouth 
of  the  St.  Lawrence  to  Fond  du  Lac,  at  the  western 
extremity  of  Lake  Superior,  has  ever  been  exposed  to 
the  influence  of  popery  from  Canada.  Indeed,  the  first 
settlers  of  most  of  the  frontier  cities  and  towns  along 
that  extended  line  were  papists. 

The  State  of  Texas,  until  its  annexation  a  few  years 
since,  was  closed  against  all  Protestant  influence  as 
strongly  as  Spain  itself ;  and  so  was  California,  until 
its  recent  conquest  and  incorporation  with  the  Union ; 
and  it  is  no  wonder,  in  view  of  historical  statements 
like  these,  that  many  among  you  may  imagine  that  we 
are  hemmed  in  on  all  sides,  save  on  the  east,  with  a 
popish  population,  which  is  pressing  inward  upon  us 
from  the  circumference  to  the  centre. 

And  then,  for  the  last  fifty  years,  there  has  been  a 
wonderful  tide  of  immigration  from  the  popish  coun- 
tries of  Europe  pouring  itself  yearly  upon  our  shores. 
It  is  asserted  by  some  popish  writers  that  not  less  than 
several  millions  of  Irish  immigrants  have  come  hither  ! 
Most  of  these  were  papists  ;  and  Irish  papists  are  to 
to  be  found  every  where  in  this  land;  and  German 
papists  are  now  coming  hither  in  numbers,  if  not  sur- 
passing, at  least  equal  to  those  coming  from  Ireland, 
and  these  very  frequently  settle  in  clusters,  where  they 
sustain  each  other  in  maintaining  their  national  and 
their  religious  peculiarities.  Now,  when  we  put  all 
these  things  together,  we  need  not  wonder  at  the  fears 
which  many,  on  your  side  of  the  Atlantic,  indulge  as 


200  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Chuich  statistics.  Papists  and  Protestants.  Moral  influence. 

to  the  prevalence  of  popery  among  us,  not  at  the  alarm 
of  many  among  ourselves  on  the  same  subject. 

And  yet  the  present  facts  in  the  case  are  as  follows : 
"While  in  Maryland  there  are  only  sixty-five  papal 
churches,  there  are  about  eight  hundred  Protestant! 
While  in  Florida  there  are  one  hundred  and  fifty-two 
churches,  there  are  but  five  of  them  papal !  Of  the 
two  hundred  and  seventy-eight  churches  of  Louisiana, 
but  fifty-five  belong  to  the  Pope !  Already  there  are 
one  hundred  and  sixty-four  churches  in  Texas,  of  which 
but  thirteen  are  papist !  and  at  the  present  hour,  the 
Protestant  is,  beyond  all  odds,  the  predominant  influ- 
ence in  California,  where,  until  very  recently,  Roman- 
ism reigned  supreme  and  alone !  Indeed,  the  census 
just  published  by  Congress  reveals  the  fact  that  the 
papists  have  in  the  entire  country,  from  the  Atlantic  to 
the  Pacific,  but  eleven  hundred  and  twelve  churches, 
accommodating  621,000  hearers,  which  is  not  one 
eleventh  of  the  number  of  Methodist  churches,  scarcely 
one  eighth  of  the  Baptist,  and  not  one  fourth  of  the 
Presbyterian.  I  hope  these  statistics,  drawn  with  some 
care  from  the  last  census  lying  before  me,  may  be  re- 
membered and  pondered  on  the  other  side  of  the  water. 

And  the  moral  influence  of  our  papal  population  is 
far  below  what  might  be  expected  from  its  numerical 
strength.  Its  political  power  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
dupes  of  the  system  vote  at  the  bidding  of  the  priest ; 
and  the  priest  would  lead  his  followers  to  the  polls  to 
vote  for  Beelzebub  as  president,  governor,  or  mayor,  if 
he  would  only  subserve  his  purposes.  On  this  account 
the  different  political  parties  court  the  priest  in  public, 


P  U 1'  K  R  Y     IN     THE     UNITED     STATES.        201 

Political  power.  An  examination.  Periodicals  and  priests. 

in  order  to  secure  the  votes  of  his  followers,  while  they 
detest  him  in  private.  But,  as  it  is  a  poor  rule  that 
does  not  work  both  ways,  this  power  is  rapidly  passing 
away,  for  our  politicians  are  beginning  to  see  that  to 
court  the  papist  is  to  array  against  them  the  Protestant ; 
and  there  is  nothing  to  be  gained  by  this  operation,  as 
the  Protestant  is  to  the  papist  as  twelve  to  one.  "While 
their  political  power  is  thus  going,  their  moral  power 
is  nothing.  The  people  are  generally  poor  and  igno- 
rant, and  greatly  immoral.  They  are,  as  a  rule,  our 
only  beggars.  They  are  the  keepers  of  our  low  grog- 
shops and  tippling-houses ;  they  form  the  main  staple 
of  our  alms-houses,  and  of  our  jails  and  prisons.  A  few 
days  since,  an  examination  was  made  in  the  House  of 
Correction  in  South  Boston,  and  out  of  forty  boys  there 
confined  for  crime,  thirty-eight  were  the  children  of 
popish  parents.  And  from  the  fact  that  priests  are 
usually  the  attendants  of  those  executed  for  murder,  I 
infer  that  most  of  our  high  criminals  have  been  brought 
up  amid  the  debasing  and  demoralizing  influences  of 
popery.  It  is  with  us  as  it  is  every  where  else  in  the 
'world,  the  more  intense  the  popery,  the  more  intense 
the  ignorance  and  wickedness  of  the  people. 

Nor  do  popish  priests  or  periodicals  give  any  moral 
power  to  the  system.  They  have  but  few  men  of  any 
talent,  and  these  have  been  so  thoroughly  beaten  in  the 
fields  of  oral  and  written  discussion  as  to  greatly  di- 
minish, their  influence  even  with  their  own  people. 
Bishop  Hughes,  of  New  York,  has  been  the  most  for- 
ward of  all  the  priests,  and,  because  of  his  political  in- 
fluence with  the  Irish,  was  not  a  little  dreaded ;  but 

12 


202  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Causes.  Gavazzi.  Madai  persecution. 

his  prestige  is  all  gone,  and  his  character  as  a  con- 
trovertist  is  in  the  dust.  Their  papers,  too,  are  of  a 
low  order,  conducted  mainly  to  excite  the  passions  of 
the  people,  and  to  inflame  their  prejudices ;  so  that 
from  the  ministry  and  the  press,  which  are  towers  of 
strength  to  the  evangelical  Christians  of  this  land, 
popery  gains  nothing  but  weakness. 

And  there  are  special  causes  existing  at  this  mo- 
ment which  make  very  much  against  the  entire  sys- 
tem. I  will  briefly  allude  to  a  few  of  them. 

The  visit  of  G-avazzi  had  a  wonderful  effect  in  draw- 
ing attention  to  the  opposition  of  the  system  to  the 
progress  of  human  liberty.  Multitudes  thronged  every 
where  to  hear  him,  and  his  orations  had  a  powerful  ef- 
fect in  arousing  the  public  mind  to  the  enormities  and 
the  wickedness  of  the  priests  ;  and  the  fierce  riots 
with  which  he  was  greeted  in  Montreal  by  the  Irish 
papists  greatly  increased  his  power. 

The  persecutions  abroad  have  been  considered  and 
pondered  here.  They  are  denounced  by  the  press  all 
over  the  Union,  save  the  few  in  the  pay  of  the  priests ; 
and  the  vindication  by  these  of  the  conduct  of  the  Tus- 
can government,  in  the  case  of  the  Madiai  and  Miss 
Gunninghame,  has  powerfully  reacted  against  them. 
There  is  nothing  on  which  we  are  so  intensely  sensi- 
tive as  on  persecution  for  opinion's  sake ;  and  it  is 
known  by  us  all,  that  in  the  vocabulary  of  the  papist, 
"  freedom  of  opinion  on  matters  of  religious  concern- 
ment" is  synonymous  with  licentiousness,  and  is  a 
damnable  delusion. 

There  is  a  little  island,  Cuba,  lying  south  of  Florida, 


POPERY    IN    THE     UNITED     STATES.         203 

Cuba.  Property  question.  Visit  of  Bedini. 

and  within  a  few  days'  sail  of  New  York,  which  is 
constantly  giving  us  illustrations  of  the  spirit  of  popery. 
Our  people  go  there  in  the  winter  for  health,  and  re- 
turn in  the  spring  to  tell  us  of  the  immoralities  of  the 
priests,  and  the  intense  superstition  and  bigotry  of  the 
people,  and  of  the  enormous  impositions  of  the  Church  ; 
and  when  we  need  in  any  way  an  illustration  of  the 
spirit  of  popery,  we  need  only  point  to  Cuba,  worse 
governed  at  this  hour  than  probably  any  spot  in  Eu- 
rope or  America.  Scenes  are  there  of  weekly  occur- 
rence, under  the  dictation  of  the  Church,  which  are  a 
disgrace  to  the  civilized  world. 

The  debates  in  some  of  our  Legislatures,  and  the 
discussion  in  many  of  our  papers  as  to  "  the  property 
question,"  has  reacted  powerfully  on  the  priests.  Here 
our  individual  churches  are  held  by  trustees,  who  are 
elected  annually,  and  who  are  known  in  law  as  a  body 
corporate.  The  priests  have  sought  to  have  an  act 
passed  making  the  bishop  of  the  diocese  the  sole  trustee 
of  all  Church  property.  They  fear  to  trust  their  peo- 
ple ;  and  as  the  bishops  are  appointed  by  the  Pope, 
such  a  law  would  place  an  immense  amount  of  prop- 
erty to  be  used,  through  his  pliant  tools,  at  will,  by  the 
Holy  Father.  This  effort  has  arrayed  many  papists 
against  the  priests,  who  have  been  signally  defeated  in 
their  object,  and  has  done  much  to  expose  their  vault- 
ing ambition.  Every  such  effort,  in  its  failure,  has  a 
destructive  rebound. 

And  last,  though  not  least,  in  these  adverse  causes, 
may  be  named  the  visit  of  Bedini,  the  Pope's  Nuncio 
to  Brazil,  taking  the  United  States  on  his  way !  He 


204  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

A  wolf.  The  rebound.  Emigration. 

came  here  a  wolf  in  the  clothing  of  a  sheep,  and  when 
the  clothing  which  covered  him  was  taken  off,  he  was 
treated  as  a  wolf.  "When  it  was  known  who  he  was, 
the  Italians  and  Germans  rose  against  him  as  the 
butcher  of  Bologna,  and  he  had  to  flee  the  country  to 
save  his  life.  His  great  dread  was  from  his  own  coun- 
trymen, who  saw  upon  his  hand  and  on  his  robes  the 
blood  of  their  own  compatriots ;  so  that  the  very  men 
from  whom  we  might  expect  an  importation  of  Aus- 
trian and  Italian  popery  are  the  very  men  who  scared 
the  nuncio  out  of  his  senses,  and  caused  him  to  flee 
as  an  assassin  from  a  land  where  he  expected  to  be 
treated  as  a  prince.  The  rebound  upon  popery  is  tre- 
mendous, and  the  priests  are  at  their  wits'  ends  to 
know  what  to  do.  The  sun  upon  their  dial  has  gone 
fifty  years  backward. 

So  that  you  need  not  fear  in  Britain  as  to  the  prev- 
alence of  popery  in  the  United  States.  Let  the  Irish 
and  the  Continental  papists  come ;  we  have  room  for 
them  all.  We  would  have  no  objection  to  the  coming 
of  the  Pope  himself.  Unless  he  can  outpreach  us,  we 
have  no  dread  of  him  ;  and  when  he  does  that  in  truth, 
he  ought  to  succeed. 

To  a  few  of  the  causes  which  have  led  to  these  re- 
sults I  now  ask  your  attention. 

1.  Emigration  itself  tends  to  expand,  enlarge,  and 
liberalize  the  mind.  The  peasants  of  Europe  are  poor, 
attached  to  ancient  habits,  and  as  far  forth  as  they  are 
papists,  bigoted,  superstitious,  and  the  dupes  of  the 
priest.  Such  are  benefited  by  a  journey  from  the  in- 
terior of  Ireland  to  Belfast  or  Dublin  ;  and  when  they 


POPERY     IN     THE     UNITED     STATES.          205 

Effects  of  it.  Powerful  influence.  Anecdote. 

return  home  they  have  many  new  subjects  of  thought. 
But  when  they  cross  the  Atlantic,  and  become  citizens 
of  the  Western  World,  there  is  soon  a  great  revolution 
apparent.  They  have  seen  the  wide  sea;  they  are 
mixing  up  with  a  new  people.  New  objects  arrest 
attention  ;  new  pursuits  occupy  their  minds  and  their 
hands.  They  are  no  longer  serfs  or  tenants ;  for  the 
most  menial  employment  they  receive  full  wages. 
They  soon  exchange  their  brogues  for  shoes,  their  caps 
for  bonnets,  their  breeches  for  pantaloons,  their  frieze 
for  broadcloth.  And  there  is  a  similar  internal  revolu- 
tion. They  commence  thinking  for  themselves.  The 
bands  of  superstition  relax,  and  soon  fall  from  around 
them.  The  dread  of  the  priest  has  passed  away,  and 
in  proportion  of  the  severity  of  the  bondage  of  the 
fatherland  is  the  rapidity  with  which  they  break  away 
from  it.  As  the  feelings  and  habits  of  Turk  or  Jew 
would  be  greatly  modified  by  a  residence  in  Scotland, 
so  are  those  of  papists  by  a  residence  in  America. 
And  here  is  an  influence  which  no  priestly  vigilance 
can  arrest.  I  found  a  young  and  vigorous  papist  read- 
ing some  tracts  which  I  once  scattered  over  a  vessel  at 
sea.  "  Why  is  it,"  said  I,  "  that  you  read  Protestant 
tracts ?"  "I  have  been  three  years  in  America,  and 
I  have  learned  to  think  for  myself,"  was  the  reply. 
The  whole  history  of  emigration  proves  that  it  tends 
to  the  modification  of  opinions,  habits,  and  customs. 
Nor  is  it  possible  for  the  papist  to  be  here  what  he 
was  in  Ireland,  France,  or  Austria. 

2.  And  every  man  in  this  land  reads  and  thinks  for 
himself,  when  he  can  read  or  think  at  all.     The  popu- 


206  PARISH     P  E  N  C  I  L  I  N  G  S. 

All  read.  The  American  feeling.  No  legal  Church. 


lar  institutions  of  the  country  render  it  necessary  to 
discuss  all  subjects  before  the  people,  and  hence  the 
all-pervading  extent  of  the  political  press.  Every  body 
reads  the  papers,  and  the  papers*  discuss  every  thing ; 
and  books  and  periodicals  are  rained  down  all  over  the 
land ;  and  such  is  the  pressure  in  that  direction,  that 
a  man  is  almost  as  much  compelled  to  read  here  as  he 
is  to  go  forward  when  drawn  or  driven  by  a  locomo- 
tive. And  the  priest  can  not  select  the  matter  to  be 
read  by  his  people.  The  mass-book  is  soon  laid  aside 
for  the  newspaper,  and  "  The  Lives  of  the  Saints," 
that  compound  of  lying  wonders,  for  miscellaneous 
reading  ;  and  but  few  here  take  any  thing  on  credit. 
The  father  and  son  are  very  often  on  the  opposite  sides 
of  the  political  and  religious  creed.  The  American 
feeling  is  to  sift  evidence  for  ourselves,  and  to  receive 
nothing  as  an  article  of  faith  simply  because  our  fa- 
thers received  it.  The  priest  that  would  attempt  to 
fasten  his  dogmas  upon  a  youth  born  here,  simply  be- 
cause they  were  believed  by  his  parents,  would  soon 
find  himself  in  the  vocative.  He  would  soon  be  told 
that  his  argument,  if  valid,  would  keep  the  Turk  a 
Turk,  the  Jew  a  Jew,  the  heathen  a  heathen  forever. 
This  American  feeling  makes  our  country  a  very  hard 
one  for  popish  missionaries.  The  traditionary  argu- 
ment, strong  in  Ireland  and  Italy,  is  here  as  flax  be- 
fore the  fire,  as  dry  stubble  before  the  raging  confla- 
gration. 

3.  Because  of  the  entire  separation  between  the 
Church  and  the  state,  we  have  no  legal  enactment  of 
any  kind  for  the  support  of  religion.  The  laws  protect 


POPERY  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES.    207 

All  protected  by  law.  An  advantage.  Common  sense. 

the  Sabbath,  and  they  protect  every  man — the  Hindu 
equally  with  the  papist  and  Protestant  in  his  religious 
worship.  No  man  is  compelled  to  support  any  faith  or 
worship  in  any  way  or  form.  Hence  we  have  no  dis- 
senters— no  clashing  of  parties  for  patronage — no  jeal- 
ousies of  sects  because  of  governmental  favors.  Hence 
the  trade  of  the  priest  in  Ireland  is  destroyed  here ; 
and  he  can  no  more  get  up  a  crusade  against  the  Prot- 
estants on  legal  grievances  than  he  can  get  up  a  pro- 
cession of  the  host  in  New  York,  like  those  of  Rome 
or  Naples.  This  gives  a  great  advantage ;  for  as  they 
stand  on  equal  ground  with  us  before  the  law,  there  is 
no  excited  passion  to  blind  them  to  the  force  of  our  ar- 
guments. We  are  thus  thrown  upon  the  Bible  and 
our  principles,  and  those  only  who  have  Scripture  and 
reason  on  their  side  can  have  any  hope  of  success. 
Here  we  have  a  vast  advantage. 

Although  an  excitable,  we  are,  after  all,  a  very 
common-sense  people.  Things  that  seem  very  proper 
among  you  would  expose  a  man  here  to  intense  ridi- 
cule. An  advocate  who  would  go  into  one  of  our 
courts  with  a  wig  on  his  head,  as  among  you,  would 
never  get  over  it.  It  is  as  much  as  many  of  our  Apos- 
tolical Successionists  and  our  Baptismal  Regenerators 
can  do  to  get  cleverly  along.  When  impervious  to  rea- 
son, they  are  intensely  ridiculed ;  but  when  the  non- 
sense assumes  the  shape  of  popery,  and  in  that  form 
puts  forward  its  dogmas  and  pretensions,  it  revolts  our 
common  sense.  Such  is  the  wakefulness  of  our  people 
to  all  subjects,  that  even  servants  in  the  kitchen,  me- 
chanics in  the  shop,  workmen  on  our  railways  and  ca- 


208  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

All  discuss.  American  taste.  lis  simplicity. 

nals,  discuss  and  decide  upon  high  topics  which  engaged 
the  minds  of  Aquinas  and  Bellarmine  ;  and,  when  Scrip- 
ture and  reason  fail,  the  cause  is  lost,  and  the  doctrine 
is  surrendered.  Hence  the  multitudes  that  have  left 
the  papal  Church,  and  the  multitudes  yet  nominally 
attached  to  it,  who  believe  in  Purgatory,  and  priestly 
remissions,  and  praying  to  saints,  and  in  the  mummery 
of  the  mass,  just  as  much  as  you  Scotch  Presbyteri- 
ans believe  in  the  saintship  of  Claverhouse  or  hi  the 
authenticity  of  the  Apocrypha. 

4.  Every  nation  has  its  own  peculiar  tastes.  This 
is  so  as  to  the  fine  arts,  as  to  architecture,  dress,  and 
the  mechanic  arts ;  and  while  true  religion  is  every 
where  the  same,  because  consisting  in  a  right  state  of 
the  heart  toward  God,  yet  there  are  natural  tastes  as 
to  its  external  development.  There  may  be  said  to  be 
in  religion  an  Italian,  German,  French,  English,  and 
Scotch  taste.  And  why  not  an  American?  The 
showy  robes  of  English  prelacy,  which  are  venerated 
south  of  the  Tweed,  are  regarded  as  the  rags  of  "  the 
old  lady  on  the  seven  hills"  north  of  it ;  and  the  plain, 
simple  dress  of  the  north  is  disdained  in  the  south. 
The  American  feeling  tends  strongly  to  the  simple  in 
religion,  so  that  even  the  gown  and  bands  are  all  but 
universally  laid  aside  among  all  Protestants,  save  Epis- 
copalians ;  and  their  dress  and  forms  are  among  the 
great  obstructions  to  their  growth  as  a  people.  If  for 
no  other  reasons  than  these,  they  never  can  extend  as 
do  other  branches  of  the  Church  in  this  land.  Hence 
the  taste  of  the  country  is  most  decidedly  anti-papal. 
Popery  might  do  for  the  Dark  Ages — it  may  do  for  a 


POPERY     IN     THE     UNITED     STATES.         209 

Popery  will  not  do.  The  Bible.  Papists  read  it. 

semi-enlightened  people  —  it  may  do  as  a  system  of 
police  in  the  old  nations  of  Europe — it  may  do  to  main- 
tain the  authority  of  the  priest  over  an  ignorant  people 
—  it  may  do  for  Italy,  or  for  Austria,  or  for  infidel 
France,  or  for  groaning  Ireland,  but  it  is  not  adapted 
to  America  ;  the  national  taste  is  averse  to  it,  and  just 
in  proportion  as  emigrants  here  become  Americans  do 
they  become  anti-papists.  The  religion  of  Italy  can 
never  intrench  itself  in  the  American  heart ;  its  his- 
tory, its  claims,  its  pretensions,  its  lying  wonders,  are 
no  greater  obstacles  to  its  growth  than  are  the  intelli- 
gence, the  common  sense,  and  the  taste  of  our  people. 
5.  The  Bible  and  the  common  school  are  mighty 
causes  for  good  among  us.  It  is  doubtful  if  there  is  a 
people  on  the  globe,  as  numerous  as  we  are,  among 
whom  the  Bible  is  more  generally  circulated.  There 
is  a  crying  destitution,  I  admit,  but  it  is  mostly  among 
emigrants,  and  on  the  selvages  of  the  country,  where 
Christian  enterprise  has  followed  too  tardily  in  the 
wake  of  our  extending  population ;  and  as  we  are  not 
afraid  of  the  Douay  Bible,  we  ask  the  papist  why  he 
should  be  afraid  of  ours  ?  We  tell  him  that  we  will 
take  his  Bible,  if  it  has  an  almanac  at  the  end  of  it ;  if 
half  of  it  is  omitted  ;  if  it  is  badly  translated  ;  and  we 
ask  him  why  he  will  not  take  ours,  even  if  he  believes 
it  defective  in  some  points?  We  moreover  tell  him 
that  we  wish  him  to  believe  no  doctrine  which  is  not 
plainly  taught  in  his  version  and  ours.  And  the  Bible 
is  read  by  papists  in  thousands;  nor  can  the  anath- 
emas of  the  priests  do  any  thing,  save  to  stimulate  them 
onward  to  its  perusal.  We  tell  them  that  the  Bible  is 


210  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  Bible  a  letter.  Public  schools.  The  knife. 

a  letter  from  their  heavenly  Father  directed  to  them, 
and  for  the  priest  to  claim  the  right  to  read  it  for  them, 
and  to  tell  them  what  is  in  it,  is  as  preposterous  as  to 
claim  to  read  and  to  interpret  for  them  the  letters  sent 
to  them  hy  earthly  parents.  And  this  is  to  them  both 
an  illustration  and  an  argument,  the  force  of  which 
they  strongly  feel.  When  they  seriously  read  the  Bi- 
ble, it  is  all  over  with  the  Pope  and  the  priest. 

And  then,  in  most  of  our  states  there  is  a  system  of 
public  schools,  by  which  all  the  children  are  brought 
together  for  instruction.  In  these  schools  the  children 
of  the  governor  and  of  his  coachman,  of  the  papist  and 
of  the  Protestant,  meet.  They  sit  on  the  same  bench, 
read  the  same  books,  and  receive  the  same  instruction. 
Their  minds  come  into  conflict ;  and  they  grow  up  to- 
gether to  think  and  to  act  for  themselves.  If  the  Bible 
is  not  read,  nor  a  word  said  upon  religious  topics  in 
these  schools,  their  whole  drift  and  tendency  is  anti- 
papal.  This  the  priests  plainly  see ;  and  hence  their 
bitter  and  leagued  opposition  to  our  public  schools. 
Knowledge  is  to  these  youths  what  a  knife  is  in  the 
hands  of  a  man  bound  with  ropes — it  enables  them  to 
cut  the  ties  of  prejudice  and  superstition  by  which  they 
are  fettered ;  and  the  priests  publicly  declare  that  it  is 
better  for  papal  parents  to  permit  their  children  to  grow 
up  in  abject  ignorance,  than  to  send  them  to  these 
schools,  where  their  salvation  is  so  much  jeopardized  ! 
But  parents  will  send  their  children  to  school.  They 
see  that  there  is  no  other  hope  for  their  rising  above 
the  condition  of  menials,  and  they  will  breast  the  wrath 
of  the  priest,  which,  even  here,  is  sometimes  quite 


POPERY     IN     THE     UNITED     STATES.         211 
The  mill.  The  atmosphere.  The  priests. 

fierce,  rather  than  fasten  the  yoke  of  servitude  on  their 
children  by  bringing  them  up  hi  ignorance.  So  that 
between  the  Bible  and  our  common  schools,  the  priests 
have  a  hard  time  of  it.  The  one  is  the  upper,  and  the 
other  is  the  nether  stone  of  a  mill  which  we  keep  in 
vigorous  operation.  We  put  the  children  in  at  the 
hopper,  and  they  come  out  at  the  spout  Americans  and 
Protestants.  Hence  the  children  of  papal  parents,  ed- 
ucated here,  to  a  remarkable  extent  pass  over  from  the 
superstitious  faith  of  their  fathers. 

Indeed,  the  very  atmosphere  of  our  country  is  Prot- 
estant. You  see  it  and  feel  it  every  where.  It  in- 
fuses a  new  kind  of  life  into  the  papists  coming  here. 
Even  the  priests  skulk  from  the  light  which  blazes 
around  them,  and  show  by  their  downcast  looks  that 
they  are  doing  the  deeds  of  darkness.  Hence  they 
must  be  all  imported.  Priests  of  native  birth  are  about 
as  scarce  as  bats  in  winter ;  and  even  the  ordinary 
servants,  when  asked  as  to  their  religion,  often  hesitate, 
and  when  papists,  seemed  ashamed  to  own  it. 

These  are  some  of  the  causes  why  popery  is  in  its 
present  low  and  feeble  condition  in  the  United  States, 
in  view  of  its  history,  its  opportunities,  and  its  ante- 
cedents ;  and  these  causes  are  yearly  increasing  in 
force  and  number.  And  never  did  it  stand  in  such  a 
pitiable  plight  before  the  country  as  it  does  at  this  hour. 

I  promise  you  that  if  you  take  care  of  papists  in 
Britain,  we  will  take  care  of  them  in  America. 


212 


PARISH     PENCILING  S. 


Anniversaries. 


A  DREAM. 

IT  was  the  week  of  the  anniversaries  in  New  York, 
and  when  they  were  mostly  celebrated  in  Metropolitan 
Hall.  With  others,  I  crowded  my  way  to  that  gor- 
geously-decorated building,  since  laid  in  ashes,  and 
heard  several  addresses  of  a  mixed  and  varied  character, 
as  they  have  been,  and  must  be.  Some  of  them  were 
wise,  and  some  otherwise  ;  some  were  very  flat — some 
very  inflated ;  some  advocate  the  particular  charity,  and 
some  themselves  in  particular.  "When  the  powers  of 
sitting  and  hearing  were  both  exhausted,  I  left  the 
Hall,  and  wandered  about,  I  cared  not  whither,  until, 
rousing  to  some  observation,  I  found  myself  in  Brook- 
lyn. There  a  raree  show  attracted  my  attention,  the 
actors  in  which  were  young  men  and  women,  exqui- 
sitely dressed,  wonderfully  polite  and  fascinating,  and 
passionately  enamored  of  one  another.  I  stood  and 
gazed  upon  their  frivolous  and  amorous  antics  for  some 
time,  when  I  was  beckoned  behind  the  curtain,  and 
entered.  I  soon  found  that  I  was  among  females  of 
the  most  fascinating  manners,  })\£  of  loose  conversation 
and  morals,  and  in  a  room  elegantly  furnished.  I  was 
left  alone  with  some  maidens,  whose  lips  dropped  as  a 
honeycomb,  and  whose  tempting  words  were  smoother 
than  oil.  A  parley  commenced ;  their  temptations  were 


A     DREAM.  213 

Exit.  Spies.  Iron  men. 

resisted,  and,  resenting  the  deception  practiced  on  me, 
I  fled  the  room. 

I  made  my  exit  through  a  room  filled  with  vulgar 
men,  who  were  drinking,  smoking,  swearing,  and  in- 
dulging in  boisterous  mirth.  I  wrapped  my  cloak 
around  me  so  as  to  conceal  my  person,  unwilling,  pure 
and  innocent  as  I  was,  to  be  recognized  as  having  been 
even  decoyed  into  such  a  place.  But  as  I  passed  out, 
I  heard  a  low  whisper  pass  round  the  room,  and  obvi- 
ously uttered  with  glee,  "  There  goes  a  minister  !  there 
goes  a  minister  !"  A  feeling  of  shame  and  humiliation 
came  over  me,  and  I  drew  my  cloak  more  tightly 
around  my  neck  and  face  as  I  issued  from  the  den  of 
wickedness — from  the  house  built  upon  the  highway 
to  hell. 

A  few  men,  who  seemed  to  act  as  spies  upon  the 
house,  and  determined  to  know  the  names  of  its  visit- 
ors, met  me  at  the  door.  They  sought  a  view  of  my 
face  in  a  way  I  deemed  inquisitive  and  impertinent, 
and  asked  me  my  name.  I  returned  a  sharp  reply, 
and  so  as  to  rebuke  their  impertinence.  "  You  are  a 
minister,"  they  said,  "  and  we  will  find  out  who  you 
are,  at  any  rate  or  cost."  I  was  shocked  alike  by 
then:  recognition  of  my  calling  and  their  stern  resolu- 
tion. I  saw  in  a  moment  they  were  men  not  to  be 
turned  aside  from  their  purpose.  I  passed  through 
narrow  streets — I  entered  public  houses  by  one  door 
and  went  out  by  another,  but  those  iron  men  followed 
me ;  and  when  rejoicing  that  I  had  at  length  escaped 
from  them,  I  would  meet  them  at  the  next  corner,  as 
determined  as  ever  to  find  me  out.  "  We  will  find  you 


214  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Hot  pursuit.  Scrutinized.  Conversation. 

out,"  were  the  words  with  which  they  greeted  me  at 
every  meeting.  I  went  up  the  river — I  entered  a  nar- 
row lane — I  concealed  myself  amid  a  thick  grove  of 
trees  at  its  end,  and  when  hoping  they  had  lost  my 
trail,  they  stood  before  me,  saying,  "  We  will  find  you 
out."  I  eventually  gained  a  narrow  neck  of  land,  al- 
most surrounded  by  water,  and  covered  with  all  kinds 
of  rubbish,  amid  which  there  were  many  low  trees. 
Not  an  individual  was  there,  and  I  could  readily  con- 
ceal myself  from  any  one  seeking  me  from  the  water 
or  from  the  land.  Here  I  hid  myself,  now  among  old 
logs,  now  amid  low  trees,  until  I  hoped  my  pursuers 
had  given  over  all  search  of  me ;  but  the  moment  I 
issued  from  it,  they  were  the  first  to  meet  me,  and 
sternly  to  say  to  me,  "  We  will  find  you  out."  I  en- 
tered a  ferry-boat  to  cross  the  river ;  they  were  behind 
me ;  they  told  every  body  they  saw  me  coming  out  of 
a  house  of  very  suspicious  character,  and  asked  all  on 
board  if  they  knew  me.  All  eyes  were  scrutinizing 
me,  and  yet  none  recognized  me. 

When  landed  in  New  York,  my  pursuers  entered 
into  a  conversation  with  friends  they  met  on  the 
wharf,  saying  they  were  going  to  have  a  great  Moral 
Reform  meeting  that  evening  at  Metropolitan  Hall,  and 
that  they  were  going  over  to  secure  the  services,  if 

possible,  of  the  Rev.  Dr. ,  of .     "  Why," 

said  the  persons,  "  Dr. was  on  board  the  boat 

with  you ;  why  did  you  not  ask  him  there  ?" 

"  Where  is  he  ?"  they  quickly  asked. 

"  There  he  is,  with  the  cloak  round  his  neck,"  was 
the  reply. 


A     DREAM.  215 

Amazed.  Honesty  the  best  policy.  Caution. 

"  And  is  that  Dr. ?"  said  they,  with  astonish- 
ment ;  "  why,  we  saw  him  coming  out  of  a  suspicious 
house  in  Brooklyn  but  a  short  time  ago,  and  we  sus- 
pected he  was  a  minister,  and  we  told  him  we  would 
find  him  out.  And  is  that  Dr. ?"  They  seem- 
ed amazed,  and  confounded,  and  overwhelmed ;  for,  al- 
though very  prying  persons,  they  seemed  to  be  good 
men. 

I  was  now  discovered ;  and,  although  conscious  of 
innocence,  I  felt  there  was  an  appearance  of  evil  which 
I  could  not  satisfactorily  explain,  and  I  was,  in  my 
turn,  overwhelmed  with  confusion.  My  conduct  was 
almost  sufficient  to  prove  my  guilt;  instead  of  de- 
nouncing the  house,  and  the  deception  practiced  on 
me,  and  frankly  telling  my  name  to  those  men  at 
once,  I  acted  as  if  a  guilty  man.  Rousing  to  a  sense 
of  my  position,  and  recognizing,  though  late,  that  hon- 
esty was  the  best  policy,  I  walked  up  to  the  men,  threw 
aside  my  cloak,  declared  my  name,  and  just  as,  with 
earnest  soul,  I  commenced  a  true  narrative  of  all  the 
circumstances,  I  awoke,  and,  to  my  unutterable  joy, 
found  that  it  was  all  a  dream. 

The  whole  thing  created  a  nervous  excitement, 
which  prevented  any  further  sleep  that  night.  Al- 
though a  dream,  it  had  its  lessons  of  instruction,  which 
I  pondered  and  noted,  and  which,  on  the  next  day,  I 
committed  to  writing  for  my  own  benefit.  They  are 
now  published  for  the  benefit  of  others. 

1.  It  teaches  us  to  beware  of  all  allurements  which 
would  decoy  us  into  the  ways  of  sin.  The  fly  plays 
unsuspiciously  around  the  candle ;  first  its  wings  are 


216  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  spider's  web.  Grace  needed.  Meet  accusers. 

scorched,  and  then  it  falls  into  the  burning  flame. 
The  spider  weaves  its  beautiful  web,  and  when  insects 
fall  into  its  meshes,  the  venomous  weaver  gloats  upon 
their  struggles,  seizes  them  in  its  deadly  fangs,  and 
carries  them  away  to  its  dark  cell.  And  thus  often 
are  men  decoyed  from  the  ways  of  virtue,  and  scarcely 
know  where  they  are  until  those  deeds  are  committed 
which  bite  like  a  serpent,  and  sting  like  an  adder. 

2.  It  teaches  us  how  much  we  need  grace  in  the 
hour    of  temptation.      Wicked  persons    are    cowards 
when  resisted ;  but,  once  yield  to  their  solicitations, 
and  they  are  bold  as  a  lion.     It  is  difficult  to  drag  a 
boat  from  the  land  to  the  water ;  but  when  out  on  the 
water,  the  hand  of  a  child  may  drive  it  along  and  turn 
it  in  any  direction.     Man,  in  his  virtue,-  is  strong ;  but 
when  he  lets  down  its  bars,  the  lock  of  his  strength  is 
gone,  and  he  is  in  the  lap  of  Delilah,  and  exposed  to 
the  Philistines. 

3.  It  teaches  us  promptly  and  honestly  to  meet  all 
accusers  face  to  face.     When  accused  of  an  evil  done, 
frankly  confess  it,  repent  of  it,  and  forsake  the  way 
which  leads  to  its  repetition  ;  when  wrongly  accused, 
assert  your  innocence,  even  when  circumstances  may 
be  such  as  to  excite  suspicion.     Suspicious  circum- 
stances may  be  explained,  but  a  cowardly  evasion  of 
explanation  may  be  tantamount  to  proof.     Joseph  as- 
serted his  innocence  even  when  the  wife  of  Potiphar 
produced  his  garment  in  testimony  against  him. 

4.  It  teaches  us  to  avoid  the  appearance  of  evil. 
Although  entirely  innocent,  appearances  may  be  strong- 
ly against  us,  and,  in  the  absence  of  positive  testimony, 


A    DREAM.  217 


Appearances.  Sin  agrarian. 

the  world  relies  on  the  evidence  of  appearances ;  es- 
pecially is  this  so  when  the  character  of  Christians  is 
involved.  Hence  the  point  and  the  importance  of  the 
command,  "  Abstain  from  all  appearance  of  evil." 

And  that  low  whisper  which  passed  round  the  room, 
and  was  uttered  with  so  much  apparent  joy,  "  There 
goes  a  minister  !  there  goes  a  minister  !"  proves  and  il- 
lustrates the  way  and  manner  in  which  the  sins  of  the 
good  cheer  and  strengthen  the  wicked  in  their  iniquity. 
Sin  is  essentially  agrarian ;  it  would  reduce  all  to  its 
own  base  level ;  and  the  pillars  of  the  temple  of  relig- 
ion and  virtue  are  giving  way  when  the  ministers  of 
Grod  fall  into  sin.  No  doubt  the  example  of  David,  in 
multitudes  of  instances,  is  quoted  in  mitigation  of  the 
sin  of  adultery  down  to  the  present  day. 

So  that  even  from  dreams  many  instructive  lessons 
may  be  drawn. 

E 


218  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Evangelists.  False  views.  The  good  denounced. 


THE  PRAYER  OF  FAITH. 

IN  my  early  ministry,  "  the  Prayer  of  Faith"  was  a 
topic  of  frequent  and  earnest  discussion.  Fanatical 
and  greatly  erroneous  views  had  widely  obtained  in 
reference  to  it,  and  mainly  through  the  agency  of  a 
wandering  class  of  evangelists,  who  for  a  time  were 
greatly  popular,  but  who,  happily,  have  now  passed 
away  like  the  summer  brook.  If  a  congregation  was 
not  revived,  it  was  because  the  minister  and  people 
had  no  faith ;  if  prayers  were  not  immediately  answer- 
ed, it  was  because  they  were  not  offered  hi  faith;  if 
the  children  of  pious  parents  were  not  converted,  it  was 
because  they  were  not  prayed  for  in  faith ;  and  if  all 
things  for  which  we  are  commanded  to  pray  were  not 
just  as  Grod  would  have  them,  the  fault  was  laid,  by 
those  fanatical  evangelists,  at  the  door  of  the  Church, 
and  to  its  lack  of  faith.  And  many  a  story  did  they 
narrate  as  to  the  efficacy  of  their  prayers,  in  proof  and 
illustration  of  their  positions ;  and  by  these  evange- 
lists and  their  followers,  those  ministers  who  enjoyed 
no  revivals,  and  those  Christian  parents  whose  chil- 
dren were  unconverted,  were  denounced  as  faithless, 
and  all  who  opposed  their  measures  and  their  views 
were  regarded  as  formalists,  and  as  blind  leaders  of 
the  blind. 

And-  all  this,  among  the  sincere  and  pious,  was  ow- 


THE     PRAYER     OF     FAITH.  219 

Two  kinds  of  faith.  Of  miracles.  Common  faith. 

ing,  perhaps,  as  much  to  a  misinterpretation  of  Scrip- 
ture as  to  any  other  cause.  We  are  obviously  taught 
that  there  were  two  kinds  of  faith  in  the  early  Church 
— extraordinary,  or  the  faith  of  miracles ;  and  com- 
mon, which  was  exercised  by  all  who  believed  the  Gos- 
pel. The  faith  of  miracles  was  exercised  by  many 
who  were  never  truly  converted,  as  by  Judas ;  but 
common  faith,  in  its  very  nature,  is  a  gracious  exer- 
cise. These  often  met  in  the  same  person,  but  they 
are  clearly  different  from  one  another.  The  faith  of 
miracles  was  peculiar  to  those  who  wrought  them,  and 
included  not  only  belief  in  the  being  and  attributes  of 
God,  but  also  that  a  particular  miracle  would  be 
wrought.  And  so  Christ  teaches,  "  Whatsoever  things 
ye  desire,  when  you  pray,  believe  that  ye  receive  them, 
and  ye  shall  have  them."  And  without  here  entering 
into  the  question  as  to  how  this  faith  was  excited  in 
the  soul,  we  only  assert  that  in  the  exercise  of  it  every 
thing  that  was  asked  was  granted.  Hence  the  prom- 
ise, "  The  prayer  of  faith  shall  save  the  sick,"  which 
is  simply  a  promise  that  miraculous  effects  should  fol- 
low a  prayer  preferred  in  the  exercise  of  miraculous 
faith. 

Besides  this,  there  is  a  faith  common  to  all  Chris- 
tians, which  rests  simply  on  the  word  and  promises 
of  Grod.  It  is  the  fruit  and  the  effect  of  Divine  teach- 
ing, and  is  wrought  in  the  soul  by  the  Holy  Ghost. 
This  faith  rests  on  the  being,  the  power,  the  promises, 
the  wisdom,  the  benevolence  of  Grod.  In  its  exercise 
we  go  to  Grod  as  children  to  a  kind  and  living  father, 
knowing  that  he  will  give  to  us  what  we  need  and 


220  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  prayer  of  faith.  Prayer  of  Christ.  Aged  man. 

will  be  for  our  good,  and  that  he  will  withhold  only 
what  we  do  not  need  and  what  would  injure.  The 
prayer  of  faith,  as  now  offered,  consists  in  going  to 
Grod,  believing  that  he  is,  and  that  he  is  the  rewarder 
of  those  who  diligently  seek  him,  and  in  the  full  per- 
suasion that  no  good  thing  will  he  withhold  from  them 
that  walk  uprightly.  It  consists  in  casting  all  our 
care  upon  him,  knowing  that  he  careth  for  us. 

Such  is  truly  the  prayer  of  faith  ;  and  because  fail- 
ing to  distinguish  between  the  faith  of  miracles  and 
ordinary  faith,  as  exercised  by  all  believers  in  prayer, 
many  have  become  vain  and  clamorous  fanatics,  act- 
ing as  if  (rod  were  bound  to  grant  them  whatever  they 
asked  with  a  zeal  inflamed  to  scalding  heat.  The  true 
model  of  the  prayer  of  faith  we  have  in  the  prayer  of 
our  Savior  in  the  garden  of  agony,  with  the  tragedy 
and  sufferings  of  Calvary  in  full  view,  "  Abba,  Father, 
all  things  are  possible  unto  thee ;  take  away  this  cup 
from  me ;  nevertheless,  not  what  I  will,  but  what  thou 
wilt."  Here  was  the  prayer  of  faith  offered  by  the  Son 
of  Man  himself  for  the  instruction  and  the  imitation  of 
all  believers. 

In  one  of  the  northern  counties  of  the  State  of  Penn- 
sylvania there  lived  an  aged  man,  honored  and  beloved 
by  all  that  knew  him  for  his  piety,  intelligence,  integ- 
rity, and  kind  philanthropy.  His  life  was  a  living  evi- 
dence to  the  truth  and  power  of  religion,  which  the  most 
bitter  infidel  could  not  gainsay.  He  had  but  one  child, 
and  that  child  was  a  son,  at  the  head  of  a  large  family 
of  his  own,  and  living  at  the  distance  of  some  miles  from 
the  house  of  his  father.  He  was  a  frank,  honest,  gen- 


THE     PRAYER     OF     FAITH.  221 

The  son.  Room  of  agony.  The  change. 

erous  man,  but  was  living  without  hope  and  without 
Grod.  He  was  laid  upon  a  bed  of  sickness,  and  his 
disease  soon  put  forth  fatal  symptoms.  The  aged  fa- 
ther was  summoned  to  the  bed  of  his  son ;  and  as  he 
felt  his  jumping  pulse,  and  laid  his  hand  upon  his 
burning  brow,  and  was  informed  that  all  hopes  of  his 
recovery  were  surrendered,  he  was  intensely  moved. 
He  soon  retired  alone  to  a  room,  where,  in  agony  of 
spirit,  he  wrestled  with  Grod  for  the  life  of  his  only  son. 
Dejected  and  mourning,  he  returned  to  the  bed  of  sick- 
ness, and  spoke  to  his  son,  as  he  could,  about  Jesus, 
and  repentance,  and  faith,  and  salvation.  But,  to  his 
surprise  and  deep  regret,  that  dying  son  heard  ah1  he 
had*  to  say  without  the  least  emotion.  The  fever 
somewhat  abated,  and  hopes  were  indulged,  but  it  was 
only  to  return  with  greater  violence.  The  father  again 
repaired  to  that  room,  and  again  he  wrestled  with  (rod, 
and  again,  dejected  and  mourning,  he  returned  to  speak 
to  his  son  about  Jesus  and  the  resurrection.  But  his 
tears,  instructions,  exhortations,  made  no  impression. 
Again  the  broken-hearted  father  repaired  to  that  room 
of  audience  with  Deity,  where  he  remained  a  long 
while  ;  and  when  he  again  appeared  at  the  dying  bed, 
it  was  with  a  spirit  and  manner  entirely  changed. 
His  heart  seemed  joyful,  though  sad ;  he  conversed 
cheerfully  with  all.  A  calm  succeeded  to  the  intense 
excitement  which  convulsed  his  whole  soul,  as  does 
the  tempest  the  ocean.  Soon  the  dying  man  became 
deeply  anxious  about  his  salvation ;  his  fether  and  his 
pastor  pointed  him  to  the  cross  ;  they  explained  to  him 
the  nature  of  faith,  and  unfolded  the  promise  and  the 


222  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Happy  death.  Burial.  Narrative. 

command,  "  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and 
thou  shalt  be  saved."  He  believed ;  his  life  was  pro- 
tracted for  a  few  days,  through  which  he  gave  as 
strong  evidence  as  the  circumstances  would  admit 
that  he  was  renewed  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Grhost ; 
and  he  died  in  the  arms  of  his  aged  father,  saying, 
with  his  last  breath,  "  I  know,  when  this  earthly  house 
of  my  tabernacle  is  dissolved,  I  will  have  a  building 
of  (rod,  a  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the 
heavens." 

The  composure  of  the  aged  father  was  so  great  after 
that  protracted  visit  to  the  room  of  prayer,  and  his 
whole  demeanor  was  so  changed,  as  to  excite  attention. 
A  calm  serenity  marked  his  conduct  during  the  death- 
struggle  and  the  funeral  solemnities  ;  and  when  turn- 
ing away  from  the  grave,  he  said,  with  tears,  but  yet 
with  joy,  "  The  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken 
away;  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord."  And  on 
being  asked  to  give  an  account  of  his  exercises  during 
these  last  days  of  his  dying  son,  he  gave  the  following 
narrative : 

"  When  I  first  heard  of  the  sickness  of  my  son,  I 
could  not  even  suppose  that  he  was  going  to  die  ;  but 
when  I  first  stood  by  his  bedside,  my  heart  sunk  with- 
in me.  I  saw  that  no  power  but  that  of  G-od  could 
holdjiim  back  from  the  grave  ;  and  I  went  to  my  room 
to  pray  for  him,  and  I  sought  for  his  life  with  a  heart 
that  would  admit  of  no  denial.  But  Gfod  seemed  hid 
from  me,  and  I  was  troubled.  I  went  again  with  very 
much  the  same  feeling,  and  with  the  same  request.  I 
could  not  bear  to  think  of  the  death  of  my  son,  and 


THE     PRAYER     OF     FAITH.  223 

Talking  with  God.  The  happy  effect. 

especially  in  his  unprepared  state  ;  and  my  heart  seem- 
ed dried,  yes,  withered  within  me,  and  I  returned  un- 
satisfied. But  I  did  not  feel  aright ;  I  was  unwilling 
that  God  should  have  his  own  way.  I  examined  my 
feelings,  and  I  thought  of  (rod.  So  I  went  to  my  room 
again,  and  I  soon  found  that  I  could  talk  with  God  as 
a  man  converses  with  a  friend.  I  told  him  that  for 
that  son  I  prayed  before  he  was  born,  and  daily  since  ; 
that  I  devoted  him  in  his  infancy  to  his  Creator ;  that 
I  sought  to  bring  him  up  in  the  ways  of  religion  ;  and 
while  I  confessed  my  deficiencies,  I  plead  his  prom- 
ises. I  sought  his  life,  if  consistent  with  the  will  of 
Grod ;  but  if  that  could  not  be  granted,  I  then  asked 
the  Lord  to  hold  him  back  from  the  grave  until  he  was 
prepared  to  make  an  exchange  of  worlds.  Then,  after 
pouring  out  my  full  soul,  I  left  my  dear  son  in  the 
hands  of  my  God,  perfectly  satisfied  that  he  would  do 
what  was  right  and  wise  with  him  and  with  me,  and 
desirous  that  the  will  of  God  should  be  accomplished, 
whether  by  his  life  or  by  his  death.  My  murmuring 
heart  was  then  at  rest.  I  felt  that  God  would  answer 
my  many  prayers  on  his  behalf.  When  I  heard  his 
crying  for  mercy' — his  rejoicing  in  the  Lord,  it  was 
what  I  expected ;  and  then  I  was  satisfied  that  he 
should  die  ;  and  now  I  know  that  while  he  can  not  re- 
turn to  me,  I  must  soon  go  up  to  him,  and  I  am  only 
waiting  for  my  Master  to  say,  '  Come  up  hither.'  But 
that  wrestling  with  God,  when  I  thought  I  could  lay 
hold  on  his  strength,  will  be  ever  a  memorable  point  in 
my  history." 

That  was  the  prayer  of  faith ;    and  we  offer  the 


224  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

When  we  pray  in  faith. 

prayer  of  faith  when  we  pray,  believing  in  the  being 
and  attributes  of  Grod — in  the  truth  of  his  promises — 
that  he  will  withhold  nothing  which  he  deems  best  for 
them  which  they  ask  agreeably  to  his  will,  and  which 
they  implore  through  Jesus  Christ,  through  whom  all 
gracious  blessings  are  bestowed.  Such  is  the  prayer 
of  faith ;  and  this  is  the  prayer  which  moves  the  hand 
which  moves  the  world. 


DEATH-BED     REPENTANCES.  225 

Daily  repentance.  Late  repentances.  Delusion. 


DEATH-BED  REPENTANCES. 

As  we  sin  daily,  repentance  should  be  the  work  of 
every  day ;  and  as  we  are  by  nature  the  children  of 
wrath,  repentance  and  faith  are  the  only  means  of 
escaping  the  wrath  of  Grod  denounced  against  sin. 
These  are  to  sinners  what  planks  are  to  sailors  after 
shipwreck,  upon  which  they  may  escape  to  the  shore, 
or  in  the  neglect  of  which  they  must  perish  amid  the 
roaring  billows. 

There  is  no  duty  more  frequently  presented  in  the 
Scriptures,  and  none  to  which  we  are  more  frequently 
urged  by  conscience,  than  repentance ;  and  yet  there 
is  none  which  we  are  more  frequently  inclined  to  post- 
pone. When  sin  once  takes  up  its  lodgings  in  the 
heart,  it  is  difficult  to  dispossess  it,  and  hence  the  dis- 
position to  put  off  repentance  to  another  day.  But  it 
should  be  remembered  that  he  that  has  promised  life 
on  repentance  has  not  promised  life  until  we  repent ; 
and  that  if  we  repent  not  in  his  time,  he  may  not  ac- 
cept of  it  when  it  suits  our  interests  to  render  it. 
While  true  repentance  is  never  too  late,  late  repent- 
ances are  seldom  sincere. 

Hence  the  awful  delusion  of  putting  off  repentance 
to  a  sick-bed  and  to  the  last  hours  of  life.  To  give  up 
the  world  when  we  can  no  longer  use  it  —  to  mourn 
over  passions  that  we  can  no  longer  indulge  —  to  ex- 

K2 


226  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Fatal  mistake.  But  one  case.  A  young  man. 

press  sorrow  for  sins  when  just  going  to  the  tribunal 
where  we  must  meet  them  all,  would  seem,  on  the  face 
of  the  statement,  to  be  fatal  to  our  sincerity  ;  and  then 
to  build  up  hopes  upon  such  repentances,  in  the  great 
majority  of  cases,  is  like  building  a  house  upon  vapors 
which  vanish  before  the  sunlight,  or  upon  the  ice  which 
dissolves  before  the  first  breath  of  summer.  And  how- 
ever true  and  sincere,  because  there  is  no  time  to  test 
them,  death-bed  repentances,  in  the  nature  of  the  case, 
must  be  ever  unsatisfactory  to  surviving  friends ;  and 
the  return  of  those  to  sin  on  their  restoration  to  health, 
who,  when  all  hope  of  life  was  given  up,  seemed  truly 
penitent  and  prepared  to  meet  their  God ,  goes  very  far 
to  cast  a  very  deep  shade  over  all  such  repentings,  and 
should  induce  all  ministers  to  protest  against  them,  and 
should  lead  all  men  to  conclude  that  the  Ethiopian  is 
not  thus  usually  washed  white — that  the  spots  of  the 
leopard  are  not  thus  easily  removed.  In  my  whole 
ministerial  experience  of  twenty-five  years,  I  remem- 
ber but  one  case  of  severe  sickness,  which  was  sup- 
posed to  be  unto  death,  that  resulted  in  true  repent- 
ance, and  in  a  new  life  on  recovery. 

There  was  a  gay,  dashing  young  man  under  my 
early  ministry,  the  son  of  pious  parents,  who  had  pass- 
ed into  the  skies,  leaving  him,  in  early  life,  to  be  cared 
for  by  others,  who  did  not  neglect  him.  He  was  taken 
sick,  and  of  a  lingering  disease,  which  seemed  steadily 
pursuing  its  fatal  purpose.  I  soon  became  a  visitor, 
and  then  a  daily  attendant  upon  him.  His  sins  came 
up  in  order  before  him,  and  he  was  intensely  anxious 
about  his  salvation.  Nothing,  for  many  days,  could 


DEATH-BED    REPENTANCES.  227 

Objections  removed.  Christ  received.  Rejoicing. 

soothe  his  disturbed  feelings.  I  sat  by  his  side,  re- 
solved, as  far  as  possible,  to  remove  every  doubt  and 
every  objection  from  the  Bible  which  I  held  open  in 
my  hand.  He  urged  his  great  sinfulness.  I  pointed 
to  Manasseh,  David,  Paul,  who  found  mercy ;  and  told 
him  of  John  Bunyan,  and  of  many  cases  which  passed 
under  my  own  observation.  He  feared  that  Christ 
would  not  receive  him.  I  told  him  of  the  errand  of 
Christ  to  seek  and  to  save  the  lost ;  I  taught  him  as 
to  the  way  in  which  the  salvation  of  sinners  added  to 
the  declarative  glory  of  the  Savior.  "When  all  objec- 
tions were  removed,  and  when  his  fears  were  thus 
quelled,  I  placed  the  plan  of  salvation  in  its  simplicity 
and  efficacy  before  him,  and  urged  his  acceptance  of  it ; 
and  before  I  closed  my  Bible,  he  said,  ""Well,  I  never 
saw  things  before  in  this  light ;  I  think  I  can  thus  re- 
ceive and  rest  upon  Christ  for  salvation."  I  prayed 
with  him,  and  retired. 

At  my  next  visit  he  was  rejoicing  in  Christ,  and  in 
the  most  familiar  manner  narrating  his  new  feelings 
to  his  friends.  The  disease  steadily  progressed  until  I 
expected  daily  to  hear  of  his  death,  but  there  seemed 
not  a  waver  in  his  feeling  of  confidence  in  Christ. 
His  spiritual  joy  increased  with  his  feebleness,  until  he 
longed  to  depart  and  to  be  with  Christ.  His  feelings, 
at  times,  rose  up  into  the  region  of  rapture.  He  se- 
lected his  funeral  text  and  hymn,  and  talked  freely  and 
peaceably  about  his  departure ;  and  although  my  con- 
fidence in  such  conversions  was  always  weak,  yet  I 
felt  that  this  was  a  genuine  case,  and  so  spoke  of  it  to 
manv- 


228  PARISH    PENCILINGS. 

Feelings  decline.  Avoided.  Excess  of  riot. 

To  the  amazement  of  all,  a  change,  as  if  by  mira- 
cle, took  place  in  his  disease,  and  he  commenced  slowly 
to  recover.  My  visits  became  less  frequent,  and  with 
returning  health  there  came  a  dryness  of  conversation 
on  religious  subjects.  At  each  visit  I  could  mark  a 
declension,-  until  finally  there  was  a  reluctance  to  hear 
any  thing  personal  on  the  subject.  When  I  saw  him 
for  the  first  time,  weak  and  wan,  in  the  street,  and 
tottering  on  the  top  of  a  stick,  I  approached  to  con- 
gratulate him  on  his  getting  out  again ;  but,  observing 
me,  he  turned  into  an  alley.  Often  did  he  send  for 
me  when  sick,  but  now,  when  recovering,  he  avoided 
me.  He  soon  regained  his  usual  strength,  and  return- 
ed to  his  ordinary  pursuits,  and,  as  if  for  the  purpose 
of  erasing  all  impressions  of  his  sick-bed  repentings,  he 
went  to  every  excess  of  riot.  Before  his  sickness  he 
was  wild,  now  he  was  wicked ;  before,  he  was  a  de- 
cent rowdy,  now  he  was  a  drunken  rake ;  before,  he 
was  full  of  noisy  nonsense,  now  you  could  hear  his 
boisterous  profanity  all  over  the  street.  He  openly 
scoffed  at  Grod,  at  the  Bible,  at  religion  in  all  its  forms ; 
and  whenever  he  saw  me  approaching  him  in  the 
street,  he  always  crossed  to  the  opposite  side,  ashamed 
to  meet  one  who  had  so  often  bowed  with  him  in 
prayer  while  apparently  on  the  crumbling  verge  of 
eternity,  and  to  whom  he  so  often  expressed  spiritual 
hopes  and  joys,  which,  in  the  belief  of  their  sincerity, 
caused  me  to  thank  Grod  and  take  courage. 

No  case  of  repentance  on  the  borders  of  the  grave 
ever  inspired  me  with  greater  confidence,  and  in  no 
case  of  backsliding  were  my  hopes  so  utterly  dashed. 


DEATH-BED     REPENTANCES.  229 

Different  judgments.  Another  instance.  The  visit. 

Many  years  have  passed  away  since  I  saw  this  young 
man.  "Whether  he  has  gone — whether  living  or  dead, 
I  know  not ;  but  when  I  last  saw  him,  he  was  as  far 
from  the  kingdom  of  heaven  as  any  person  I  ever  knew. 
And  yet,  had  he  died  of  that  fearful  sickness,  I  would 
have  held  him  up  as  an  instance  of  true  conversion  on 
a  dying-bed.  "  Man  looketh  on  the  outward  appear- 
ance, but  the  Lord  looketh  on  the  heart." 

From  very  many  similar  instances  I  select  another. 

Mr.  B was  an  active,  skillful  mechanic,  of  bright 

mind,  ready  wit,  and  free,  social  habits.  But  he  was 
profane,  given  to  drink,  skeptical,  and  neglectful  of  all 
religious  ordinances.  I  often  sought  to  make  some 
serious  impression  in  some  way  upon  him,  but  I  was 
only  beating  the  air.  He  fell  into  a  slow  consumption  ; 
and  while  he  could  go  about,  my  visits  to  him  in  sick- 
ness were  like  those  in  health,  apparently  in  vain. 
When  his  lungs  were  almost  gone,  and  on  a  very  warm 
day  in  summer,  when  the  air  was  motionless  and  filled 
with  vapor,  and  when  even  those  in  perfect  health  felt 
oppressed,  he  sent  for  me.  I  found  him  gasping  for 
breath,  and  apparently  dying.  He,  in  broken  accents, 
confessed  his  great  sins,  and  implored  forgiveness  of 
God.  I  told  him  of  Christ,  and  of  the  freeness  of  his  sal- 
vation to  all  who  truly  repented  and  believed.  "  Oh," 
said  he,  "  I  repent  and  believe  with  all  my  heart."  I 
told  him  that  ah1  Grod  required  was  the  heart,  and  that 
when  we  believed  with  the  heart  the  justifying  right- 
eousness of  Christ  was  ours.  "  I  believe  with  all  my 
heart,"  was  his  energetic  reply.  I  prayed  with  him, 
and  retired,  deeply  pondering  the  event. 


230  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Profanity.  Another  visit.  Death. 

I  called  next  day  and  found  him  considerably  re- 
lieved, but  yet  breathing  with  difficulty.  I  made  kind 
inquiries  as  to  his  symptoms.  "  Oh,"  said  he,  "  there 
is  nothing  the  matter  with  me  but  these  d — d  lungs," 
at  the  same  time  striking  his  breast  With  great  vio- 
lence ;  "  they  are  getting  better,  and  I  hope  to  be  soon 
out  again."  I  was  shocked  at  his  profanity.  I  sought 
to  recall  the  feelings  and  confessions  of  the  previous 
day,  but,  inspired  by  his  temporary  relief  with  the  hope 
of  recovery,  it  was  all  in  vain.  The  heart,  which,  in 
the  presence  of  death,  had  melted  as  wax  before  the 
fire,  had  resumed  its  accustomed  icy  hardness  and  cold- 
ness. Fear  had  inspired  his  feelings ;  and  when  fear 
subsided,  his  feelings  passed  away  like  foam  upon  the 
troubled  waters. 

But  soon  death  came  again,  and  with  a  determina- 
tion not  to  be  driven  from  his  prey.  I  was  again  sum- 
moned in  a  great  hurry  to  his  dying  bed.  He  was  in 
the  last  struggle.  The  big,  cold  sweat  came  gushing 
from  all  his  pores.  He  strove  to  speak,  but  in  vain. 
He  looked  on  me  imploringly,  and  with  a  keen  earnest- 
ness which  made  impressions  now  as  fresh  as  when 
made,  though  years  have  passed  away.  I  held  up 
Christ  to  him,  dwelling  upon  the  text,  "  Look  unto  me, 
all  ye  ends  of  the  earth,  and  be  ye  saved."  I  told  him 
that,  though  he  could  not  speak  nor  turn,  yet  he  could 
look — that  it  was  only  to  "  look  and  live."  He  under- 
stood all — he  assented  to  all.  And  he  died,  leaving  on 
my  heart  the  deep  impression  that  all  his  religious  feel- 
ings were  induced  by  the  fear  of  death,  and  that  if  he 
had  recovered,  his  confessions  and  prayers  would  have 


DEATH-BED     REPENTANCES.  231 

Late  repentance  uncertain.  Warning  to  all. 

been  subjects  of  mirth,  while  occupying  a  seat  among 
the  scorners,  and  among  the  fools  that  hate  knowledge. 
Instances  like  these  have  taught  me, 

1.  To  place  no  strong  confidence  in  death-bed  re- 
pentances.    Even  when  they  are  such  as  to  inspire 
some  hope,  I  say  but  little  about  them.     I  would  not 
rudely  tear  away  the  comfort  they  give  to  surviving 
friends,  but  I  carefully  refrain  from  making  them  the 
basis  of  hope  to  any.     Before  Grod  they  may  be  genu- 
ine, but  before  man  they  must  ever  be  doubtful,  as 
we  must  judge  of  repentance  by  its  fruits. 

2.  They  have  taught  me  to  warn  all  men  against 
postponing  repentance  to  a  dying  bed.     Repentance  is 
the  work  of  our  life,  and  of  every  day  of  it.     And  to 
put  it  aside  until  we  can  sin  no  more  among  our  fel- 
low-men, until  the  last  sands  in  the  glass  of  life  are 
running,  is  unutterably  preposterous.    When  men  make 
their  will  in  health,  why  will  they  put  off  repentance 
to  sickness  and  a  dying  bed  ?     Are  the  favors  of  God 
— our  eternal  residence,  matters  of  such  inferior  im- 
portance as  to  be  crowded  into  the  last  hours  of  life, 
and  when  utterly  unable  to  attend  to  earthly  things  ? 

True,  the  thief  on  the  cross  repented,  and  was  par- 
doned in  the  last  hour  of  his  life,  but  we  do  not  know 
that  he  ever  had,  previously,  a  call  to  repentance.  Had 
he  been  frequently  called,  and  had  he  frequently  re- 
fused to  attend,  we  have  no  reason  to  conclude  that  he 
would  have  been  called  again.  The  most  hopeless  of 
men  are  those  who  have  most  frequently  quenched  the 
Spirit,  and  who  have  most  frequently  turned  a  deaf  ear 
to  the  calls  of  mercy.  Iron  is  converted  into  steel  by 


232  •  PARISH     PfeNCILINGS. 

The  heart  of  steel.  Neither  presume  nor  despair. 

being  frequently  hardened  and  suddenly  cooled ;  and 
thus  the  heart  of  steel  is  made.  The  only  sure  way 
to  secure  a  truly  peaceful  and  happy  death  is  to  live 
the  life  of  the  righteous.  The  thief  on  the  cross  is  the 
only  instance  of  true  repentance,  at  the  close  of  life,  in 
the  Bible,  and  that  is  placed  on  record  to  forbid  pre- 
sumption and  despair.  If  but  one  such  case  is  on  rec- 
ord, who  should  presume?  If  one  is  on  record,  who 
need  despair  ? 


DIFFERENT    OPERATIONS THE    SAME    SPIRIT.   233 

Experiences.  Pilgrim's  Progress.  Fears. 


DIFFERENT  OPERATION S-THE  SAME  SPIRIT. 

THERE  are  many  ministers  who  are  very  fond  of 
relating  religious  experiences  in  their  preaching ;  there 
are  meetings  among  some  evangelical  Christians  for 
the  special  purpose  of  narrating  experiences ;  and  in 
the  religious  literature  of  the  Church,  there  are  many 
truthful  and  deeply-interesting  narratives  of  the  con- 
version of  men  who  subsequently  became  greatly  dis- 
tinguished in  life,  and  which  are  held  up  as  almost  the 
only  truthful  models  ;  and  there  is  a  great  tendency  to 
test  our  own  experience  by  these,  rather  than  by  the 
law  and  the  testimony ;  and  the  more  peculiar  any  ex- 
perience may  be,  the  more  many  regard  it  as  genuine, 
and  the  more  anxious  are  they  that  their  own  should 
be  a  counterpart  of  it.  That  wonderful  book,  the  Pil- 
grim's Progress,  portrays  in  many  of  its  thrilling  scenes 
the  experience  of  Bunyan  himself,  because  of  his  pre- 
vious life  and  peculiar  temperament,  one  of  the  most 
tempted  of  the  children  of  Grod ;  and  I  have  known 
many  humble  and  devoted  disciples,  because  their  ex- 
perience was  different  from  that  of  Christian,  living  in 
the  constant  fear  that  they  had  neither  lot  nor  part 
among  the  children  of  light.  Because  of  the  influence 
of  natural  temperament  on  our  experience,  and  of  our 
disposition  to  regard  that  as  the  most  genuine  which 
is  the  most  marked  by  extremes,  I  have  sometimes 


234  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Frames  and  feelings.  False  standards.  Quackery. 

doubted  whether  these  narratives  were  productive  of 
most  good  or  evil.  Because  some  could  tell  the  day, 
the  place,  the  circumstances  of  their  conversion,  I  have 
known  others,  giving  far  more  evidence  of  a  new  na- 
ture, mourning  because  they  could  not.  Because  men 
of  nervous  and  feeble  frames  were  at  times  in  the 
deepest  gloom,  I  have  heard  good  people,  who  were  the 
salt  of  the  earth,  often  questioning  their  own  state 
because  they  had  no  feelings  corresponding  to  those  of 
the  sainted  Brainerd  and  Payson.  And  just  as  travel- 
ers love  to  visit  the  dashing  river,  whose  rapids  delight, 
and  whose  cataracts  astonish  and  overwhelm,  rather 
than  the  deep,  quiet  one  which  pursues  its  noiseless 
way  to  the  ocean,  so  good  people  prefer  to  read  and 
ponder  the  experience  to  which  a  peculiar  mind  and 
temper  give  exciting  variety,  rather  than  that  of  those 
whose  lives  are  only  marked  by  an  even,  daily  living 
unto  Grod. 

In  every  case  of  true  conversion  the  result  is  the 
same,  a  new  nature ;  but  that  result  is  produced  by  a 
great  variety  of  operations.  Some  are  converted  as 
was  Paul,  some  as  was  John ;  some  are  made  to  quake 
under  the  power  of  their  convictions  and  in  view  of 
the  terror  of  the  law  ;  some  are  so  drawn  by  the  cords 
of  love  as  to  feel  but  little  of  the  one  and  to  see  but 
little  of  the  other.  To  judge  of  the  truth  of  conversion 
by  its  attending  circumstances  is  to  commit  a  great 
and  practical  mistake ;  and  to  try  a  true  Christian  ex- 
perience by  the  same  uniform  test,  is  a  sure  proof  of 
spiritual  quackejy.  The  process  of  reasoning  that 
convinces  one  is  a  tissue  of  sophistry  to  another ;  the 


DIFFERENT    OPERATIONS THE    SAME    SPIRIT.    235 

Varying  culture.  Varying  means.  An  instance. 

arguments  that  induce  one  to  bow  at  the  foot  of  the 
cross  for  mercy  are  utterly  beyond  the  comprehension 
of  another.  Hence  the  importance  of  different  minis- 
ters to  suit  the  varying  grades  of  intelligence  ;  and 
as  different  kinds  of  trees  require  a  different  soil  and 
culture  to  secure  their  best  growth  and  their  best  fruit; 
so  different  classes  of  people  require  a  culture  suited  to 
their  tastes,  intelligence,  and  dispositions,  to  secure 
their  growth  in  grace.  Hence  the  forms  that  refresh 
some  would  starve  others,  and  the  warm  excitement 
of  a  Methodist  camp-meeting,  that  is  blessed  to  some, 
repels  others ;  some  are  driven  to  the  fold  of  God  by 
the  earthquake,  the  thunder,  the  lightning ;  some  are 
drawn  to  it  by  the  still,  small  voice  ;  some  are  best 
nourished  to  a  vigorous  growth  in  grace  amid  the  gor- 
geous forms  or  high  excitements  of  worship ;  others  by 
a  simple,  spiritual  worship,  quiet  as  the  gently  flowing 
river  whose  murmurs  are  never  heard,  and  which, 
while  it  fertilized  all  on  its  banks,  reflects  the  image  of 
heaven.  "  The  wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth,  and  thou 
hearest  the  sound  thereof,  but  canst  not  tell  whence 
it  cometh  or  whither  it  goeth ;  so  is  every  one  that  is 
born  of  the  Spirit."  "  There  are  differences  of  admin- 
istrations, but  the  same  Lord ;  and  there  are  diversities 
of  operations,  but  it  is  the  same  God  who  worketh  all 
in  all."  And  who,  with  even  a  few  years*  experience 
in  the  ministry,  has  not  found  many  illustrations  of 
these  plain,  common-sense  principles  ? 

Miss was  the  child  of  moral  but  not  religious 

parents.  She  was  brought  up  in  a  community  where 
there  were  no  means  of  grace  save  those  which  were 


236  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

The  usual  process  apparently  omitted. 

fanatical,  and  rather  repellant  than  attractive.  She 
was  sent  away  to  a  boarding-school,  and  returned  to 
take  the  first  position  among  the  educated  and  fashion- 
able of  her  native  town.  She  came  some  miles  to  at- 
tend on  my  ministry.  I  soon  perceived  that  she  was 
deeply  interested,  and  sought  an  interview  with  her. 
Her  mind  was  bright,  intelligent,  and,  save  on  relig- 
ious subjects,  well  instructed.  As  I  unfolded  the  doc- 
trines of  the  Gospel,  she  gave  her  ready  assent  to  them 
all.  As  I  placed  Christ  before  her  in  the  fullness  of 
his  salvation,  she  saw  at  once  that  he  was  the  end  of 
the  law  for  righteousness  to  every  one  that  believed 
on  him,  and,  without  hesitation,  accepted  of  him  as 
her  Savior.  There  seemed  to  be  no  deep  conviction, 
no  conversion,  and  yet  the  thing  required,  faith,  was 
there,  and  in  its  most  sweet  and  lovely  exercises. 
Without  any  noise,  or  any  special  attention,  or  any 
solicitation,  she  became  a  member  of  the  Church.  As 
a  lamb  enters  the  flock,  she  sought  a  place  among  the 
people  of  God ;  and  for  a  quarter  of  a  century  she  has 
lived  to  be  a  blessing  to  the  Church  and  to  adorn  her 
profession.  She  could  tell  you  of  the  love  of  God  shed 
abroad  in  her  heart ;  but  of  the  deep  convictions  of 
Christian  in  the  Pilgrim's  Progress,  and  of  the  terrible 
doubts  and  fears  of  Payson,  she  had  no  experience. 
And  a  merchant,  known  and  honored  for  many  years 
in  all  the  ways  of  mercantile,  Christian,  and  philan- 
thropic life,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  and  whose  path, 
from  the  day  he  professed  Christ  until  that  of  his 
death,  was  "  as  the  shining  light,"  was  often  heard 
to  say  that  he  knew  nothing  of  conviction,  a  part 


DIFFERENT    OPERATIONS THE    SAME    SPIRIT.    237 

A  converted  papist. 

of  the  usual  process  by  which,  sinners  are  usually 
led  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus. 
"  There  are  diversities  of  operations,  but  it  is  the 
same  spirit." 

Mrs.  L was  brought  up  a  papist,  and,  of  course, 

in  utter  ignorance  of  the  Bible  and  its  religion.  G-ood 
sense,  and  some  travel,  and  much  intercourse  with 
people  of  other  faith,  had  so  weakened  the  influence 
of  her  bad  education  over  her,  that  she  could  occasion- 
ally worship  within  Protestant  churches.  She  became 
an  occasional,  and  then  a  frequent  attendant  on  my 
ministry.  On  her  solicitation,  I  made  her  a  visit. 
She  gave  me  an  intelligent  narrative  of  her  life  and 
of  her  then  state  of  mind.  She  had  been  reading  the 
Bible,  and  was  much  in  prayer.  As  she  needed  the 
sincere  milk  of  the  word,  I  explained  to  her,  in  a  man- 
ner the  most  simple,  the  leading  doctrines  of  the  Gros- 
pel.  "When  I  concluded,  she  said,  with  emphasis, 
"  This  is  just  what  I  wanted  to  know ;  this  is  just  the 
religion  I  need."  I  prayed  with  her,  and  before  I  re- 
tired she  was  rejoicing  in  the  Lord,  and  joying  in  the 
(rod  of  her  salvation.  Her  subsequent  life  proved  it 
to  be  a  work  of  the  Spirit. 

Miss was  brought  up  in  a  circle  of  fashion, 

where  the  form  of  religion  was  respected,  but  its  spir- 
ituality and  power  totally  disregarded.  Her  powers  of 
mind  and  her  education  were  hi  advance  of  those 
around  her,  among  whom,  by  her  rapid  perception,  and 
keen  wit,  and  generous  bearing,  she  was  an  oracle. 
She  became  an  attendant  on  my  ministry,  and  soon 
deeply  anxious  about  her  soul.  Her  convictions  were 


238  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Strong  unbelief.  No  uniform  mould. 

of  the  deepest  character.  Fearing  and  quaking,  she 
stood,  for  weeks  together,  in  the  very  presence  of  Sinai 
convulsed  with  tempests  ;  and  when  the  voice  of  Mercy 
seemed  to  rise  above  the  tempest,  and  its  melting  ac- 
cents fell  upon  her  ear,  she  would  scarcely  hear  it.  Her 
unbelief  was  strong  beyond  expression.  She  quarreled 
with  every  doctrine  and  every  duty  ;  and  nothing  was 
believed  or  done  only  as  the  convicting  Spirit  subdued 
her  obstinate  unbelief.  Finally  the  citadel  of  the  heart 
was  captured,  and  without  another  struggle  she  yield- 
ed to  the  commands  of  her  Master.  Her  promptness 
to  obey  was  now  as  great  as  was  her  perverse  obstina- 
cy ;  and,  thinking  that  she  could  almost  see  the  steps 
by  which  she  ascended  from  the  horrible  pit  and  the 
miry  clay,  she  yielded  herself  a  living  sacrifice  to  Christ, 
feeling  it  to  be  a  reasonable  service ;  and  a  useful, 
consistent,  and  devoted  life  for  many  years  proved  that 
the  change  wrought  upon  her  was  the  work  of  God. 
"  There  are  different  operations,  but  it  is  the  same 
Spirit." 

The  Lord,  with  whom  alone  is  the  power  to  renew 
the  heart,  has  no  one  mould  into  which  to  cast  all 
hearts.  He  uses  very  different 'means  to  take  away 
the  heart  of  stone  and  to  give  a  heart  of  flesh ;  and 
he  uses  very  different  means  for  the  cultivation  of  the 
graces  of  his  people.  He  leads  his  people  by  ways  that 
they  knew  not  onward  to  the  fulhiess  of  the  stature  of 
s,  perfect  men  in  Christ  Jesus.  But  while  the  means  are 
diverse,  the  result  is 'always  the  same,  faith — faith  bear- 
ing good  fruit ;  and  the  means  are  of  trifling  import- 
ance compared  with  the  result;  and  when  convinced 


DIFFERENT  OPERATIONS THE    SAME    SPIRIT.    239 

Green  pastures  differ.  Good  men  differ. 

that  the  heart  is  changed,  I  care  nothing  about  the 
means ;  and,  while  there  is  a  wide  difference  in  the 
green  pastures,  yet  I  will  rejoice  over  all  that  are  feed- 
ing in  any  of  them. 

Let  us  beware  of  confining  the  Spirit,  in  the  putting 
forth  of  its  divine  influence,  to  any  of  our  rules,  or  forms, 
or  Church  notions.  Let  us  beware  of  condemning  all 
in  the  way  of  profession  or  experience  which  is  not  in 
accordance  with  our  standards.  Where  we  see  true 
faith  bearing  good  fruit,  let  us  cultivate  brotherly  kind- 
ness, knowing  that  "  there  are  different  operations,  but 
it  is  the  same  Spirit."  Luther  and  Calvin  differed ; 
.so  did  Wesley  and  Whitfield ;  and  so  did  Dr.  Mason 
and  Bishop  Hobart ;  but  they  are  now  rejoicing  in 
heaven ;  and  so  will  all  the  children  of  faith  when 
their  work  is  ended.  I  would  not  advise  the  laying 
aside  of  our  peculiarities,  but  I  would  strongly  advise 
to  regard  them  as  entirely  secondary  to  faith  in  Christ, 
for  this  is  the  saving  grace. 

I  have  no  disposition  to  cut  off  any  who  believe  in 
Christ  from  the  kingdom  of  heaven ;  but  of  all  men, 
those  most  deserve  this  excision  who  exclude  all  from 
the  grace  and  favor  of  God  but  themselves.  All  such 
are  wholesale  schismatics. 


240  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 


A  state  of  deep  desertion. 


THE  SORROWFUL  SERMON. 

IT  was  the  day  of  my  weekly  lecture,  and  but  a  few 
months  after  my  second  settlement  as  a  pastor.  I 
spent  the  morning  in  my  study  in  preparation  for  the 
Sabbath,  but  there  was  no  excitement  of  thought  or 
feeling  on  my  mind  or  heart.  The  most  important 
truths  had  lost  all  their  connection,  vitality,  and  fresh- 
ness, and  seemed  to  lie  before  me  like  a  bundle  of  dry 
sticks ;  and  to  produce  a  thought  seemed  as  impossible 
as  to  draw  water  from  an  empty  well  with  a  bucket 
without  a  bottom  ;  and  the  morning  was  spent  in  the 
vain  effort  to  arrange  some  ideas  on  a  selected  text 
worthy  of  being  placed  on  paper.  Mind  and  heart 
seemed  as  barren  as  the  sands  of  the  desert. 

The  afternoon  was  given  to  preparation  for  the  even- 
ing lecture,  but  there  was  no  lifting  up  of  that  "  black- 
ness of  darkness."  It  became  denser  with  the  approach 
of  evening.  The  Bible  was  turned  over  from  cover  to 
cover,  but  not  a  text  could  be  found  from  which  a 
sentiment  or  meaning  could  be  drawn  adapted  to  the 
occasion  or  to  the  audience  which  usually  met  in  the 
lecture-room.  The  very  avenues  to  the  throne  of  grace 
seemed  barred  up  against  all  access  to  God,  so  that  I 
could  truly  say,  in  the  language  of  Job,  "  Behold,  I  go 
forward,  but  he  is  not  there ;  and  backward,  but  I  can 


THE     SORROWFUL     SERMON.  241 

Horror  of  darkness.  The  meeting.  Prayers. 

not  perceive  him ;  on  the  left  hand,  where  he  doth  work, 
but  I  can  not  behold  him ;  he  hideth  himself  on  the 
right  hand,  that  I  can  not  see  him."  Of  all  the  days 
of  my  life,  that  was  the  day  in  which  I  could  say  most 
emphatically,  as  to  spiritual  things,  that  "  a  horror  of 
great  darkness"  had  fallen  upon  me.  The  sun,  moon, 
and  stars  had  all  gone  out  in  my  spiritual  sky. 

The  bell  rang  for  the  evening  service,  and  its  first 
notes  fell  upon  my  ear  as  a  death-knell.  Slowly  and 
sorrowfully  I  went  to  that  meeting  with  my  people,  my 
mind  a  perfect  blank,  and  without  a  text  or  subject  on 
which  to  discourse  to  them.  It  was  a  charming  night 
in  October,  when  the  moon  was  shining  brightly,  and, 
to  my  regret,  I  found  the  lecture-room  unusually  full. 
I  resolved  to  change  the  service  into  a  meeting  for 
prayer,  and  commenced  it  with  the  hymn, 

" How  long  wilt  thou  conceal  thy  face! 

My  God,  how  long  delay  1 
When  shall  I  feel  those  heavenly  rays 
That  chase  my  fears  away?" 

I  called  upon  an  aged  elder  to  pray,  who  prayed  with 
remarkable  devotion  of  thought  and  with  great  unction. 
Because  in  consonance  with  my  feelings,  I  read  the 
42d  Psalm,  and  my  heart  could  truly  respond  to  the 
sentiment  of  the  Psalmist:  "0  my  God,  my  soul  is  cast 
down  within  me  ...  all  thy  waves  and  thy  billows 
are  gone  over  me."  But  I  was  yet  without  a  text  or 
subject  on  which  to  address  the  people.  I  called  upon 
another  elder  to  pray,  who  in  his  supplications  entered 
fully  into  the  spirit  of  the  psalm ;  and  while  he  confess- 
ed and  bewailed  our  spiritual  desertion,  most  fervently 

L 


242  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

Topic  suggested.  Cecil.  Decline. 

implored  that  the  Lord  would  again  "  give  us  a  little 
reviving  in  our  bondage."  It  was  during  this  prayer, 
and,  indeed,  by  the  prayer  itself,  that  the  topic  of  "  de- 
clension in  religion"  was  suggested  as  a  theme  for  re- 
mark. Drawing  largely  on  the  existing  feelings  of 
my  own  mind  and  heart,  without  a  text,  and  without 
knowing  what  I  was  going  to  say  when  I  commenced, 
I  entered  upon  the  topic,  and  said  something  on  the 
causes,  marks,  and  remedy  of  spiritual  declension. 
The  following  language  of  Cecil  was  brought  seasona- 
bly to  my  remembrance,  and  was  quoted  for  substance : 
"  A  Christian  may  decline  far  in  religion  without  being 
suspected;  he  may  maintain  appearances.  Every 
thing  to  others  seems  to  go  on  well.  He  suspects 
himself;  for  it  requires  great  labor  to  maintain  ap- 
pearances, especially  in  a  minister.  Discerning  hear- 
ers will,  however,  often  detect  such  declensions.  He 
talks  over  his  old  matters.  He  says  his  things,  but  in 
a  cold  and  unfeeling  manner.  He  is  sound,  indeed,  in 
doctrine ;  perhaps  more  sound  than  before,  for  there 
is  a  great  tendency  to  soundness  of  doctrine  when  ap- 
pearances are  to  be  kept  up  in  a  declining  state  of  the 
heart.  Where  a  man  has  real  grace,  it  may  be  a  part 
of  a  dispensation  toward  him  to  permit  him  to  decline. 
He  walked  carelessly ;  he  was  left  to  decline,  that  he 
might  be  brought  to  feel  his  need  of  vigilance.  If  he 
is  indulging  a  besetting  sin,  it  may  please  Grod  to  ex- 
pose him,  that  he  may  hang  down  his  head  as  long  as 
he  lives.  But  this  is  pulling  down  in  order  to  build 
up."* 

*  Cecil's  Remains,  p.  182. 


THE  SORROWFUL  SERMON.        243 

Meeting  ended.  A  seasonable  visit.  Revival. 

As  I  proceeded,  the  subject  seemed  to  open  up  before 
me,  but  I  felt  that  I  condemned  myself  at  every  sen- 
tence ;  and  at  the  conclusion  of  a  disconnected,  frag- 
mentary address,  I  called  upon  another  person  to  con- 
clude the  meeting  with  prayer.  On  the  conclusion  of 
the  services,  I  returned  to  my  study  dejected,  and  op- 
pressed with  a  sense  of  my  being  forsaken  of  God,  and 
grieved  that  I  had  ever  assumed  the  responsibilities  of 
the  ministry. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day,  an  intelligent  and 
pious  female  called  to  see  me.  She  alluded  to  the 
service  of  the  previous  evening  as  being  one  of  the 
most  solemn  she  had  recently  attended.  I  heard  her 
with  silence,  and  made  no  response.  One  of  the  men 
who  prayed  soon  afterward  called ;  he  made  the  same 
remark.  The  solemnity  of  that  evening's  lecture  was 
a  topic  of  conversation  for  some  days  with  those  who 
were  present.  The  prayer-meetings  were  soon  more 
fully  attended.  There  were  searchings  of  heart  among 
the  people.  Our  public  and  social  services  increased 
in  attendance  and  solemnity.  The  praying  and  the 
anxious  ones,  as  they  invariably  do,  multiplied  simul- 
taneously ;  and  thus  opened  the  first  revival,  in  my 
second  settlement,  under  my  ministry,  and  which  con- 
tinued for  upward  of  a  year,  gently  distilling  its  bless- 
ed influences,  multiplying  the  followers  of  Christ  and 
their  graces.  Some  of  its  subjects  are  now  faithful 
and  useful  ministers  of  the  Gospel.  Never  did  I  more 
fully  realize  the  truth  of  the  proverb,  that  "  the  darkest 
hour  is  just  before  the  light,"  or  of  the  saying  of  the 
Psalmist,  "  He  that  goeth  forth  and  weepeth,  bearing 


244  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Hidings  not  desertion.  Their  object. 

precious  seed,  shall  doubtless  come  again  with  re- 
joicing bearing  his  sheaves  with  him." 

This  dark  and  yet  joyful  incident  is  here  noted,  not 
because  of  its  peculiarity,  as  there  are  but  few  minis- 
ters who  have  not  a  similar  experience,  but  for  the 
purpose  of  bringing  out  a  few  of  the  principles  of  which 
it  is  an  illustration. 

The  hiding  of  God's  countenance  is  not  always  de- 
sertion. We  are  backward  in  duty,  we  are  negligent 
in  its  performance,  we  are  self-confident,  we  are  world- 
ly. We  keep  not  the  Lord  always  before  us.  For 
these,  or  for  some  other  sins,  and  for  their  reproof,  God 
may  withdraw  the  light  of  his  countenance  ;  and  then 
we  walk  in  darkness,  as  does  the  traveler  at  midnight, 
when  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars  have  withdrawn  their 
shining ;  and  on  all  such  occasions  the  people  of  the 
Lord  should  inquire,  "  Why  art  thou  cast  down,  0  my 
soul,  and  why  art  thou  disquieted  within  me  ?  Hope 
thou  in  God;  for  I  shall  yet  praise  him  who  is  the 
health  of  my  countenance  and  my  Grod."  On  due  in- 
quiry, we  will  find  that  no  new  thing  has  happened  to 
us — that  a  part  of  God's  dispensations  to  his  people  is 
to  show  them  their  weakness  by  leaving  them  to  them- 
selves, and  to  demonstrate  their  constant  need  of  him 
by  leaving  them  occasionally  to  tread  the  weary  ways 
of  life  by  the  light  of  the  sparks  of  their  own  kindling. 
And  we  should  be  careful  how  we  violate  the  principle 
thus  taught  and  sung, 

"  Judge  not  the  Lord  by  feeble  sense, 

But  trust  him  for  his  grace  ; 
Behind  a  frowning  providence 
He  hides  a  smiling  face  " 


THE     SORROWFUL     SERMON.  245 

Preaching  from  experience.  Sameness. 

May  it  not  be  that  ministers  preach  too  little  from 
their  own  varying  experience?  If  truly  good  men, 
their  experience,  in  its  main  outlines,  is  that  of  all  the 
Lord's  people.  Preachingon  doctrines  strengthens  and 
enlightens — on  duties,  stimulates  to  action:  exhorta- 
tory  preaching  may  quicken  the  footsteps  of  the  indo- 
lent ;  but  when  they  preach  from  their  own  deep,  heart- 
felt experience,  and  whether  the  string  they  touch  gives 
forth  notes  of  joy  or  sorrow,  they  find  notes  responsive 
in  the  hearts  of  many  hearers.  The  seat  of  religion  is 
the  heart ;  and  when  they  preach  from  an  experience 
of  the  power  of  the  grace  of  Grod  in  their  own  hearts, 
they  are  more  likely  to  reach  the  hearts  of  their  hearers. 

May  it  not  be  that  the  unvarying  sameness  which 
has  obtained  in  our  stated  public  and  social  services, 
detracts  from  their  power  and  usefulness  ?  How  often 
do  ministers  hear  least  about  the  preparations  on  which 
they  have  bestowed  most  labor ;  and  most  about  the 
warm,  heartfelt  addresses  made  to  meet  an  emergency, 
and  without  any  previous  preparation !  I  have  often 
observed  that  a  warm,  blundering  man  does  far  more 
for  the  world  than  a  stately,  correct,  and  frigid  one. 
When  we  get  into  the  habit  of  inquiring  on  all  occa- 
sions, great  and  small,  as  to  proprieties  and  expedien- 
cies, life  is  too  often  spent  to  little  purpose.  Nature 
craves  for  variety ;  and  eccleseology  would  reduce  every 
thing  to  an  unvarying  form  in  public  and  social  worship. 
Such  forms  of  worship  are  as  unnatural  as  they  are  in- 
jurious. Sermons  occasionally  without  texts — sermons 
sometimes  without  music  or  prayers — and  prayers  and 
singing  sometimes  without  sermons,  would  break  in 


246  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Study  variety.  Cecil's  omitting  prayers. 

upon  the  monotony  which  has  almost  universally  ob- 
tained, and  would,  at  least,  so  far  lead  to  awaken  at- 
tention to  the  truth  of  God.  "We  would  not  imitate 
the  example  of  the  eccentric  preacher,  who,  on  seeing 
his  hearers  sleeping  around  him,  cried  out  "  Fire !  Fire !" 
and  when  the  aroused  people  asked  "  where  ?  where  ?" 
replied,  "  for  sleeping  souls  in  hell ;"  "but  we  would  rec- 
ommend a  studied  effort  to  introduce  variety  into  all 
the  services  of  God,  for  the  sake  of  our  common  hu- 
manity, and  because  of  the  good  which  may  result. 
It  is  said  of  the  excellent  Cecil,  that  he  often  omitted 
family  prayer,  for  the  purpose  of  breaking  in  upon  what 
might  otherwise  be  regarded  as  a  very  unmeaning  and 
heartless  form. 

I  have  never  forgotten  the  impressions,  and  hope 
never  to  forget  the  lessons,  taught  me  by  that  sorro\v- 
ful  sermon. 


BEASTS     AT     EPHESUS.  247 

Opposition  unchanged.  Difficulties  of  missionaries. 


BEASTS  AT  EPHESUS. 

THE  difficulties  amid  which  the  Gospel  of  salvation 
has  been  preached  have  been  substantially  the  same 
in  every  age.  Pagan  and  papal  Rome  have  shed  the 
blood  of  the  martyrs,  and  so  have  papal  and  Protestant 
Britain.  The  carnal  heart  is  enmity  toward  God,  and 
the  cross  of  Christ  is  yet  to  the  Jews  a  stumbling 
block,  and  to  the  Greeks  foolishness ;  and  the  opposi- 
tion of  the  unchanged  heart  to  the  Gospel  is  the  same 
now  as  when  the  persecuting  Csesars  reigned  on  the 
Tiber — as  when  Paul  fought  with  beasts  at  Ephesus — 
modified  in  its  actings  only  by  humane  laws,  advanc- 
ing civilization,  and  the  general  prevalence  of  the  spirit 
of  Christianity. 

Of  this  general  truth,  the  history  of  the  labors  of 
many  of  the  domestic  missionaries  of  every  evangeli- 
cal Church  in  the  United  States  would  furnish  abun- 
dant illustration.  These  laborious  and  excellent  men 
endure  many  privations,  and  have  many  severe  con- 
flicts with  those  who  oppose  themselves.  Out,  as  they 
mainly  are,  on  the  selvages  of  society,  and  among  those 
least  morally  instructed,  whose  passions  are  strong,  and 
whose  errors  are  often  as  bold  as  they  are  absurd  and 
wicked,  they  often  require  great  courage  and  nerve  to 
stem  the  open  opposition  often  made  to  them  because 


248  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Protracted  meetings.  Town  described.- 

they  preach,  the  doctrine,  of  repentance  toward  God 
and  faith  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

I  commenced  my  ministry  when  "protracted  meet- 
ings" were  popular,  and  when  the  evangelists,  by  whom 
they  were  conducted  on  the  highest  key  of  excitement, 
were  regarded  as  "  the  angels  of  the  churches."  And 
although  connected  with  a  class  of  ministers  who  nev- 
er favored  "  the  revival  evangelists,"  and  who  opposed 
the  "  new  measures"  of  which  "  anxious  seats"  were 
the  representative,  yet  we  yielded  so  far  to  the  popu- 
lar feeling  of  the  Church  as  to  hold  protracted  meet- 
ings, which  were  conducted  by  ourselves  without  for- 
eign aid  and  without  new  measures.  For  the  purpose 
of  illustrating  the  power  of  the  Gospel,  and  the  kind 
of  opposition  with  which  it  has  not  unfrequently  to 
meet,  I  will  give  a  brief  narrative  of  one  of  those  meet- 
ings. 

T was  a  town  of  some  importance  in  Northern 

Pennsylvania.  Its  first  settlers  were  chiefly  from  New- 
England — men  of  enterprise  and  shrewdness,  but  with- 
out religion.  It  became  the  county  town,  and  had  its 
court-house,  and  jail,  and  taverns,  but  no  church  of 
any  kind.  Universalism  and  infidelity  were  there,  and 
united  their  forces  to  oppose  every  effort  to  introduce 
the  Gospel  into  the  community.  The  only  preaching- 
place  was  the  Court-house,  and,  as  every  body  had  a 
right  to  go  there,  many  thought  they  had  a  right  to 
treat  the  minister  when  preaching  as  they  were  accus- 
tomed to  treat  the  politician  when  making  a  political 
harangue,  and  especially  to  treat  with  rudeness  what 
did  not  agree  with  their  prejudices  ;  and  this  right  was 


BEASTS    AT     E  P  H  E  S  U  S.  249 

Right  exercised.  Threats.  Forearmed. 

often  queerly  exercised  by  interrupting  a  preacher,  by 
putting  questions  to  him  in  the  midst  of  his  sermon, 
by  persons  getting  up  and  leaving  the  room,  and,  as 
they  retired,  pronouncing  some  truth  declared  to  be  a 
d — d  lie.  Nor  were  these  things  done  simply  by 
the  rabble ;  they  were  practiced  and  countenanced  by 
men  of  intelligence  and  position.  These  things,  and 
the  morals  which  they  cherished,  obtained  for  the  town, 
at  a  distance,  the  name  of  "  Satan's  Seat,"  and  caused 
many  a  good  minister  to  fear  to  preach  the  Gospel 
there,  lest  he  should  be  attacked  and  insulted  by  these 
emissaries  of  Satan,  these  beasts  at  Ephesus. 

It  was  in  this  town  that  a  neighboring  pastor  of  ex- 
cellent and  prudent  character  resolved  to  hold  a  pro- 
tracted meeting,  and  to  invite  some  of  his  brethren  to 
his  assistance.  I  was  of  the  number  invited.  Our 
only  preaching-place  was  the  Court-house,  which  was 
duly  secured  for  our  purposes,  and  the  meeting  was 
generally  advertised  for  weeks  previous ;  and  expecta- 
tion was  on  tiptoe  as  to  our  meeting,  its  disturbance, 
and  its  results.  Threats  were  made  beforehand,  and 
by  men  who  lacked  neither  the  energy  nor  the  impu- 
dence to  carry  out  their  most  wicked  purposes.  To 
be  forewarned  is  to  be  forearmed,  and  we  went  to  the 
Court-house  prepared  for  an  attack,  but  in  what  way  it 
was  to  come  we  knew  not. 

It  was  in  the  evening.  The  room  was  crowded.  It 
was  with  difficulty  that  the  ministers  could  make  their 
way  to  the  seat  occupied  by  the  judges  when  the  court 
was  in  session.  As  the  preliminary  services  were 
being  performed,  I  strove  to  read,  as  I  could,  the  crowd 
L2 


250 


PARISH     PENCILING  S. 


The  table.  A  group.  Interruption. 

around  me.  Just  beneath  me  was  the  green  table 
around  which  the  lawyers  sat  when  at  court,  and 
around  the  niche  in  that  table  sat  a  few  individuals, 
whose  object  in  coming  to  the  meeting  could  not  be 
mistaken.  Their  whisperings,  winkings,  and  noddings 
satisfied  me  as  to  the  quarter  from  which  difficulty 
might  be  expected  ;  and  I  plainly  saw  that  they  had 
their  sympathizers  and  opposers  in  the  crowd.  Con- 
spicuous among  them  was  a  Campbellite  Baptist 
preacher,  of  low  character,  and  a  lawyer  of  the  place, 
who  was  said  to  be  like  his  father,  and  a  little  more 
so ;  the  character  of  that  father  was  a  hybrid,  such  as 
we  might  expect  to  be  produced  by  now  pettifogging, 
and  now  acting  as  Universalist  exhorter.  These  two 
men  were  the  leaders. 

As  I  arose  to  preach,  I  paused  a  moment  to  take  a 
close  survey  of  these  men.  They  were  just  beneath 
me.  As  their  gaze  met  mine,  they  dropped  their 
heads.  I  saw  in  a  moment  they  were  only  braggarts 
that  could  be  soon  driven  to  the  wall.  Save  the  rust- 
ling of  their  paper,  on  which  they  were  making  notes, 
every  thing  was  quiet  to  the  close  of  the  service.  The 
moment  the  benediction  was  pronounced,  the  Camp- 
bellite Baptist  sprung  to  his  feet  and  screamed  out, 
"  I  wish  to  know  whether  I  may  ask  the  preacher  a 
few  questions  ?"  The  crowd,  which  commenced  mov- 
ing, was  brought  to  a  dead  pause,  and  waited  hi 
breathless  silence  for  a  reply.  Some  felt  that  the  fight 
was  now  fairly  opened.  After  a  brief  pause,  I  replied 
as  follows :  "  We  have  come  here  to  preach  the  G-os- 
pel  for  a  few  days  to  those  who  may  choose  to  come 


BEASTS     AT     EPHESUS.  251 

The  reply.  The  effect.  Meeting  for  inquiry. 

and  hear  us.  One  of  our  principles  is  to  disturb  no- 
body in  their  religious  worship ;  and  another  is,  to  al- 
low nobody  to  disturb  us.  There  is  a  law  to  protect 
us  from  disturbance,  and  we  shall  see  that  that  law  is 
enforced."  Then  turning  to  the  man  who  asked  the 
question,  I  said  to  him,  "  You  are  either  an  honest  or 
dishonest  inquirer :  if  an  honest  one,  you  may  come 
to  my  lodgings,  and  I  will  answer,  as  far  as  I  am  able, 
any  of  your  questions ;  if  a  dishonest  one,  as  I  fear 
you  are,  I  wish  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  you,  here 
or  there."  He  could  make  no  reply,  and  the  crowd 
dispersed  applauding  the  positions  taken,  but  yet  feel- 
ing that  the  end  of  the  chapter  was  not  yet. 

As  the  meetings  progressed,  a  deep  solemnity  was 
soon  observable.  As  the  gainsayers  were  regularly  at 
their  post,  there  was  a  constant  crowd  in  attendance, 
in  expectation,  daily,  of  some  conflict.  In  the  evening 
they  came  in  great  numbers  from  the  surrounding 
country,  and  long  before  the  hour  of  service  the  Court- 
house was  crowded  to  its  utmost  capacity.  At  the 
conclusion  of  a  deeply  solemn  service  one  evening,  we 
invited  the  serious  to  retire  to  a  room  in  the  building 
for  religious  conversation.  As  we  entered  the  room,  to 
our  astonishment,  we  found  there  a  large  number  of 
persons  deeply  anxious,  among  whom  were  some  prom- 
inent citizens ;  and  conspicuous  among  them  was  the 
Campbellite  preacher  and  his  friend  the  lawyer.  I 
saw,  at  a  glance,  that  accounts  must  be  first  settled 
with  these  before  we  could  proceed  ;  and,  approaching 
the  preacher,  I  asked  him  sternly,  "  What,  sir,  is  your 
object  in  coming  here?"  "I  want  you,"  he  replied. 


252  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

The  intruders.  One  sent  off.  About  the  devil. 

"to  give  right  instruction  to  these  anxious  sinners; 
and  for  this  purpose  I  wish  you  to  read  this  chapter." 
And,  suiting  the  action  to  the  word,  he  put  a  small  Bible, 
opened,  into  my  hands.  Amazed  at  his  cool  imperti- 
nence, I  returned  the  Bible,  saying,  "  When,  sir,  we 
need  your  counsel  and  aid,  we  will  send  for  you ;  and 
as  we  did  not  invite  you  here,  you  will  leave  the  room." 
And  as  it  was  now  my  turn  to  suit  the  action  to  the 
word,  I  gently  laid  my  hand  upon  his  shoulder  and 
pointed  to  the  door,  and,  to  my  surprise,  he  went  quietly 
away.  "Wickedness  is  always  cowardly. 

Having  gotten  rid  of  one  customer,  I  then  approach- 
ed the  lawyer,  who  had  obviously  more  daring  about 
him  than  the  ignorant,  unmannerly  preacher.  "  And 
what,  sir,"  said  I,  "  is  your  object  in  coming  here  ?" 
Stretching  himself  to  his  highest  altitude,  and  in  a 
semi-comic  way,  designed  to  produce  merriment  in  that 
anxious-room,  he  replied,  "  You  have  said  something 
in  your  sermon  to-night  about  the  devil,  and  I  thought 
I  would  come  and  ask  you  who  the  devil  is."  Feeling 
that  it  was  one  of  those  occasions  which  would  justify 
the  answering  of  a  fool  according  to  his  folly,  I  replied, 
"  You  are  the  first  man  I  have  met,  for  some  time,  that 
did  not  know  who  his  father  was."  The  question  and 
answer  were  heard  by  all  in  the  room.  I  then  said  to 
him,  as  to  his  companion  in  wickedness,  "  As  we  did 
not  invite  you  here,  sir,  you  will  leave  the  room."  Soon 
the  comic  was  changed  to  the  tragic  aspect,  and  he 
declared,  "  I  will  not  leave  the  room ;  this  house  is  a 
county  house,  and  is  free  and  open  to  us  all ;  I  have  as 
good  a  right  to  be  here  as  you  have."  It  so  happened 


BEASTS     AT     EPHESUS.  253 

Another  turned  out.  His  rage.  New  names. 

that  among  the  inquirers  was  an  aged,  athletic  man,  a 
prominent  citizen,  and  an  associate  judge  of  the  county ; 

and  I  said  to  him,  "  Judge,  will  you  see  that  Mr. 

leaves  the  room."     He  rose  at  once,  and  said  to  him, 

"  Mr. ,  you  will  leave  the  room,  sir."     There  was 

no  alternative  but  to  leave,  and  he  went  out  enraged  ; 
and  he  went  down  the  stairs  swearing  that  he  would 
shoot  me,  as  sure  as  he  was  a  living  man.  The  door 
was  then  closed ;  we  proceeded  with  our  service,  and  a 
more  deeply-impressed  company  of  anxious  inquirers, 
asking  what  they  should  do  to  he  saved,  I  never  saw. 

The  services  of  the  evening  ended.  There  was  a 
deep  excitement  upon  many  minds  as  to  what  the  en- 
raged lawyer  would  do.  Six  or  eight  men  accompa- 
nied me,  or  kept  near  me,  on  my  way  to  my  lodgings. 
They  feared  his  violence ;  but  when  I  knew  their  ob- 
ject, I  told  them  there  was  nothing  to  fear,  as  I  soon 
saw  the  man  was  only  a  braggart.  The  question  he 
asked  up  stairs,  and  the  reply  to  it,  soon  got  into  circu- 
lation. The  interview  was  all  over  town  the  next  day, 
and  every  where  the  old  man  was  hailed  as  "  the  old 
devil,"  and  the  enraged  lawyer  as  "  the  young  devil." 
There  were  some  who  affirmed  that  rarely  could  the 
epithets  be  more  appropriately  applied. 

That  was  the  end  of  the  lawyer  as  far  as  our  ser- 
vices were  concerned ;  but  the  preacher  regularly  at- 
tended them.  He  lodged  at  the  public  house,  and  it 
was  whispered  that  he  did  not  always  drink  cold  water. 
After  a  solemn  meeting,  in  which  the  preacher  strong- 
ly presented  the  idea  that  morality,  however  spotless  in 
the  view  of  man,  could  not  save  a  sinner,  in  making 


254  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

To  the  tavern.  The  effects.  The  opposers. 

his  way  through  the  crowd,  he  said,  "  Let  me  go  where 
morality  is  more  respected  than  here  !"  I  saw  the  hit 
would  have  its  effect  upon  some  minds,  and  in  a  low, 
but  yet  audible  tone,  said,  "  The  gentleman  wants  to 
get  to  the  tavern."  He  got  out,  and  that  was  the  end 
of  him. 

The  services  subsequently  proceeded  without  any 
disturbance  of  any  kind.  The  solemnity  increased  from 
day  to  day.  The  Gospel  was  joyfully  received  by  many 
in  that  town  and  in  the  surrounding  country.  A 
church  was  organized,  of  which  those  hopefully  con- 
verted at  that  protracted  meeting  were  the  main  ele- 
ments. A  church  was  soon  erected.  That  ungodly 
clique  was  broken  up,  and  its  chief  members  convert- 
ed into  laughing-stocks.  Twenty-five  years  have  near- 
ly passed  away  since  that  meeting,  through  which  its 
influence  for  good  has  been  felt  on  all  the  interests  of 
society.  That  once  wicked  town  is  now  the  seat  of 
several  churches,  and  of,  at  least,  one  moral  and  educa- 
tional institution,  which  is  destined  to  shed  its  light  on 
the  surrounding  country,  and  for  ages  to  come. 

"What  has  become  of  that  Campbellite  preacher,  I 
know  not.  He  was,  beyond  doubt,  a  bad  man.  If  yet 
living,  may  the  Lord  convert  him.  The  lawyer  to  get 
rid  of  the  sobriquet,  "  the  young  devil,"  went  to  parts 
unknown,  and  thus  happily  relieved  the  community 
from  his  evil  example.  One  of  the  beloved  men  who 
preached  on  that  occasion  has  gone  up  to  his  reward, 
while  three  yet  survive  who  were  engaged  in  this  con- 
flict with  beasts  at  Ephesus. 

The  malignity  of  these  men  was  overruled  for  good. 


BEASTS     AT     EPHESUS.  255 


Wicked  men  have  their  use. 


They  overshot  the  line  of  even  allowed  opposition  there, 
and  disgusted  many.  They  made  show  of  fight,  and 
attracted  multitudes  to  witness  the  affray.  Thus  they 
multiplied  the  hearers  of  the  Gospel  and  the  trophies 
of  the  cross.  The  Lord  often  makes  the  use  of  wicked 
men  that  sportsmen  do  of  their  dogs — the  dogs  start 
the  birds,  and  then  the  sportsmen  shoot  them ;  so  that 
beasts  at  Ephesus  have  their  place  in  the  economy  of 
redemption.  "What  they  mean  for  evil  the  Lord  over- 
rules for  good. 


256  PARISH     PENCIL  INGS. 


Wyoming  Valley. 


DRIFT-WOOD. 

THE  first  years  of  my  ministry  were  spent  on  the 
banks  of  the  Susquehanna,  and  in  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  valleys  upon  earth.  It  has  been  my  lot  to 
wander  upon  foreign  shores.  I  have  gazed  upon  Ital- 
ian skies  and  scenes ;  I  have  wandered  over  the 
mountains  and  vales  of  Switzerland ;  I  have  traversed 
the  Rhine,  the  Rhone,  the  Clyde ;  I  have  gazed  upon 
most  of  the  beautiful  scenery  of  Britain,  and  yet  I 
turn  to  Wyoming  as  unsurpassed  in  quiet  beauty  by 
any  vale  that  I  have  ever  seen. 

"  A  valley  from  the  river  shore  withdrawn ; 

***** 

So  sweet  a  spot  of  earth,  you  might,  I  ween, 

Have  guessed  some  congregation  of  the  elves, 

To  sport  by  summer  moon,  had  shaped  it  for  themselves." 

The  river  by  which  it  is  divided,  enriched,  and 
greatly  beautified,  is  subject  to  freshets.  This  is 
caused,  in  the  spring,  by  the  sudden  melting  of  the 
snow  in  the  mountain  ranges  in  which  it  has  its  rise, 
and  at  other  seasons  of  the  year  by  heavy  rains. 
"When  swollen,  as  I  have  often  seen  it,  it  rushes  on 
with  fearful  rapidity  and  violence,  sweeping  to  destruc- 
tion every  thing  that  lies  in  its  way  ;  and  when  thus 
swollen,  often  have  I  stood  on  its  banks,  and  gazed 
with  trembling  on  the  terrific  current  sweeping  away 


DRIFT-WOOD.  257 


Fishing  drift-wood.  Various  ways. 

houses,  mills,  trees  torn  from  its  banks,  and  rotten 
wood  of  all  kinds  and  sizes,  and  whirling  them  in 
every  direction  as  if  they  were  but  corks. 

These  freshets  were  occasions  of  some  importance 
to  that  class  of  people,  too  large  in  every  community, 
who  live  by  their  wits.  These,  taking  their  position 
on  the  bank  of  the  river  with  fit  Implements,  were  la- 
borious in  their  efforts  to  fish  from  the  turbulent  cur- 
rent the  floating  timbers.  They  were  often  success- 
ful, and  in  a  few  days  would  pile  on  the  shore  drift- 
wood enough  to  supply  them  with  fuel  for  a  few 
months.  It  was  quite  amusing  to  witness  the  scenes 
which  often  occurred.  When  a  large  timber  was  seen 
in  the  'distance,  each  was  anxious  to  be  its  captor. 
One  would  harpoon  it,  and  when  shouting  out,  "  I 
have  it,"  the  force  of  the  current  would  sweep  it  away ; 
and  thus  many  would  successively  harpoon  it,  but  yet 
it  would  escape  from  them  all.  The  size  of  the  log 
and  the  force  of  the  current  gave  it  a  momentum  that 
no  arm  could  resist.  Great  exertion  was  often  made 
to  bring  a  drift  to  the  shore ;  but  when  caught,  it  was 
found  worthless,  and  was  cast  back  again  into  the 
foaming  waters.  At  a  sharp  turn  in  the  river  much 
lumber  was  driven  on  shore,  and  to  that  spot  many 
would  rush,  hoping  there  to  catch  a  fine  log,  but  it 
would  shoot  round  the  corner  and  disappoint  them  all. 
Some  lumber  would  float  into  an  eddy,  or  would  get 
entangled  among  the  trees  on  the  low  bottoms,  or 
would  be  caught  by  a  pier,  where  it  was  considered 
secure ;  but,  on  a  sudden,  the  power  of  the  current 
would  drive  it  into  the  middle  of  the  river,  and  down 


258  PARISH     PENCILINGS. 

Collected  for  fire.  A  type.  A  college  boy. 

it  would  go,  disappointing  all  hopes.  When  the  fresh- 
et rapidly  subsided,  much  lumber  was  left  upon  the 
dry  land,  there  to  remain  until  another  sheuld  come 
and  carry  it  farther  down  toward  the  ocean.  It  was 
not  even  picked  up  as  fuel  for  the  fire.  One  thing 
was  very  observable,  that  the  drift-wood  was  but  rare- 
ly fitted  to  be  wrought  into  a  building,  or  to  be  used 
for  any  ornamental  purpose.  It  was  usually  gathered 
into  heaps,  and  when  sufficiently  dry,  to  be  burned. 

And  all  this  is  but  the  type  of  what  is  constantly 
occurring  in  society  around  us.  Are  there  not  freshets 
in  society  as  upon  our  great  rivers ;  excitements,  polit- 
ical, moral,  and  religious,  which  work  great  changes, 
which  reveal  men  of  principle,  which  tear  up  and  send 
adrift  those  not  rooted  and  grounded  in  the  truth  ?  In 
what  community  or  in  what  calling  are  not  persons  to 
be  found  whose  only  fit  emblem  is  drift-wood  ? 

I  had  a  college-mate  of  many  good  qualities.  He 
was  fluent,  rapid  in  his  conceptions,  a  professor  of  re- 
ligion, but  vain  and  ambitious.  He  was  a  candidate 
for  the  ministry.  But  there  were  indications  that  his 
vanity  was  stronger  than  his  principles,  and  that  to 
feed  the  one  he  would  sacrifice  the  other.  The  fresh- 
et came  in  our  junior  year,  when,  on  the  giving  out 
of  the  appointments  which  indicated  the  standing  of 
the  students  as  scholars,  he  failed  to  obtain  any.  He 
expected  one  of  the  highest ;  he  got  none.  His  pride 
was  mortified  beyond  endurance — he  left  college — he 
gave  up  the  ministry — he  made  shipwreck  of  faith- 
he  went  out  upon  the  sweeping  tide  of  politics,  where, 
no  doubt,  unless  radically  changed,  his  principles  are 


DRIFT-WOOD.  259 


A  young  divinity.  High  flight.  Another  specimen. 

yet  the  weaker,  and  his  vanity  the  stronger  power. 
Such  persons  can  never  be  any  thing  but  drift-wood. 

I  had  a  theological  class-mate  of  very  good  qualities. 
He  was  good-looking — he  dressed  well — he  wrote  po- 
etry—  he  flattered,  and  was  flattered  by,  the  ladies. 
He  knew  more  about  Tom  Moore  than  Turretin;  he 
read  Greek  less  than  Goethe ;  he  preferred  Walter  to 
Thomas  Scott,  and  could  quote  Byron  at  least  as  well 
as  the  Bible.  Vanity  was  his  besetting  sin.  He  got 
license  to  preach,  but  could  get  no  settlement.  Think- 
ing that  the  people  of  the  Church  of  his  fathers  were 
too  dull  to  appreciate  his  shining  qualities,  he  passed 
over  to  another.  To  be  in  keeping  with  his  high 
flights,  he  became  High- Church,  and  whither  the  fresh- 
et has  carried  him  I  know  not.  He  has  written  a 
book,  as  I  learn,  on  "  The  Succession,"  of  which  he 
knows  as  much  as  about  the  precession  of  the  equinox- 
es, and  which  has  only  served  to  prove  that  he  was,  or 
is,  drift-wood. 

I  had  yet  another  fellow-student.  He  was  young, 
ruddy,  and  prepossessing.  Although  yet  in  his  teens,  he 
was  deeply  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  New  Measures, 
then  on  the  high  tide  of  successful  experiment.  He 
denounced  his  teachers  as  pharisees  and  fogies.  "While 
yet  a  student,  he  practiced  his  new  notions  in  a  small 
way.  Finding  but  little  encouragement  for  his  novel- 
ties, he  changed  his  latitude  for  more  congenial  climes. 
He  entered  the  ministry  a  New-measure  man,  greatly 
exciting  the  hopes  of  their  friends.  He  went  abroad, 
and  became  enamored  of  the  old,  petrified  measures  of 
the  Old  "World,  and  on  his  return  deserted  his  former 


260  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

From  hot  to  cold.  "  One  of  Three  Hundred."  Another. 

friends.  Now,  excitements  were  only  injurious,  and 
Church  power  and  set  forms  were  every  thing.  This 
was  a  change  from  the  equator  to  the  poles.  For  a 
while  he  linked  himself  with  the  straitest  sects  of  the 
Church  of  his  fathers,  but  that  did  not  long  suffice. 
He  was  on  the  bosom  of  the  swollen  river,  and  could 
not  stop.  At  a  bound  he  became  a  Puseyite,  and, 
whether  for  funds  or  to  make  friends,  wrote  one  of  the 
most  disgraceful  and  truthless  books  known  to  theo- 
logical controversy  in  modern  days.  The  book  by 
"  One  of  Three  Hundred"  proves,  at  least,  that  its  au- 
thor was  -of  the  drift-wood  species.  He  had  no  root  in 
himself ;  he  was  the  prey  of  every  current ;  and  if  he 
had  remained  a  little  longer,  another  swell  of  the 
freshet  would  have  swept  him  from  his  Oxford  eddy, 
and  would  have  left  him  deep  in  the  mud  of  the  Tiber, 
praying  to  the  Virgin  to  take  him  out  and  clean  him 
off. 

Another  specimen  of  the  same  genus.  He  was  bold, 
bluff,  and  self-confident.  "When  a  student  he  went  to 
three  colleges,  and  claimed  credit  for  it !  He  went,  at 
least,  to  three  seminaries,  to  get  the  good  of  each.  He 
was  educated  a  Presbyterian,  ordained  a  Congregation- 
alist,  became,  I  believe,  a  Methodist,  then  a  Baptist ; 
but  what  he  now  is,  I  know  not,  nor  does  he  know  him- 
self. Each  thought  they  had  him,  but  he  escaped  from 
them  all.  The  harpoon  entered  the  log  in  a  soft  place, 
where  it  could  not  hold.  What  has  become  of  him  I 
know  not ;  but  when  next  drawn  to  the  shore,  he  may 
be  cast  back  again  into  the  current  as  too  worthless  to 
repay  the  trouble  of  fishing  him  out. 


DRIFT-WOOD.  261 


Exceptions.  Changeling.  A  conscientious  elder. 

There  are  exceptions  to  all  general  rules.  In  the 
course  of  his  studies,  a  young  man  may  see  reasons  suf- 
ficient to  leave  the  Church  of  his  early  education  for 
some  other.  No  man  is  bound  to  the  faith  of  his  fa- 
thers, because,  if  so,  the  Jew  must  remain  a  Jew,  the 
pagan  a  pagan,  the  papist  a  papist,  forever.  No  young 
man  is  to  be  censured  for  departing  from  the  faith  of 
his  fathers,  if  he  does  so  for  reasons,  and  wisely.  But 
when  men  have  formed  their  opinions,  and  preached 
them  for  years,  and  then  change  them,  it  is  an  evidence 
of  a  restless,  disordered  state  of  mind.  One  or  two  at- 
tacks of  any  disease  renders  the  system  liable  to  its  re- 
turn ;  and  one  or  two  changes  in  opinions  is  liable  to 
convert  the  individual  into  a  changeling,  and  to  send 
him  out  upon  the  stream  of  life  as  drift-wood. 

And  how  many  there  are  connected,  as  private  mem- 
bers, with  the  churches  whose  only  fit  emblem  is  drift- 
wood. They  go  here  and  there  as  prejudice,  or  passion, 
or  fashion,  or  some  disappointment  may  sway  them. 
I  knew  an  elder  twice  censured  in  a  Presbytery,  who, 
in  revenge,  became  a  most  violent  High- Churchman, 
and  had  all  his  children  rebaptized  for  conscience'  sake ! 

Mr. and  family  were  from  England ;  according 

to  their  own  showing,  they  left  the  husks  of  the  Estab- 
lishment for  the  simple  truth  of  the  Independents. 
They  then  attached  themselves  to  the  ministry  of  some 
supralapsarian  shoemaker.  They  came  to  this  coun- 
try, but  for  a  long  time  could  find  no  suitable  suc- 
cessor to  the  shoemaker.  As  I  was  considered  as  com- 
ing nearest  to  him,  they  placed  themselves  under  my 
ministry.  For  a  time  they  would  have  plucked  out 


262  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

A  fever.  The  unsettled  numerous.  Causes. 

their  eyes  and  given  them  to  me ;  but  the  Millerite 
fever  became  epidemic,  and  they  caught  it  badly.  The 
fanatics  of  that  threadbare  nonsense  became  their  fa- 
vorites. I  no  longer  preached  the  Grospel,  because  I  did 
not  preach  up  the  destruction  of  the  world  about  Easter, 
and  advise  the  faithful  to  commence  cutting  their  as- 
cension robes.  They  were  swept  out  as  drift-wood 
upon  the  bosom  of  the  freshet,  but  where  it  has  carried 
them  is  hardly  worth  the  inquiry. 

And  persons  of  whom  drift-wood  is  the  true  emblem 
are  to  be  found  in  every  community,  and  attached  to 
all  congregations.  They  are  as  numerous  as  those  who 
are  ungoverned  by  fixed  principles.  There  are  those 
in  the  ministry  who  can  pass  from  this  body  to  that, 
from  this  school  to  that,  with  all  ease.  These  regard 
themselves,  and  would  be  regarded  by  others,  as  mod- 
erate and  catholic*  But  there  is  another  explanation 
for  all  this ;  their  own  lines  of  opinion  are  drawn  with 
invisible  ink,  and  can  be  shifted  to  suit  circumstances ; 
they  have  no  root  in  themselves.  There  are  those  in 
the  churches  upon  whom  you  can  make  no  calculation. 
The  next  freshet  may  carry  them  into  some  new  con- 
nection, or  work  a  change  in  their  entire  views  and 
feelings.  I  look  around  me,  and  see  persons  who  have 
been  connected  with  three  churches  in  less  than  three 
years.  I  see  others  who  have  passed  from  one  denom- 
ination to  another  because  their  minister  did  not  like 
secret  societies,  or  preach  up,  to  the  point  of  scalding 
heat,  the  efficacy  of  some  plans  of  social  reform.  And 
there  are  but  few  churches  in  the  land  where  the  fresh- 
ets to  which  human  opinions  and  society  are  ever  liable 


J)  R  I  F  T  -  W  O  O  D.  263 

Deposits.  Dr.  Priestley.  A  wide  difference. 

have  not  deposited  some  of  this  drift- wood,  where  it 
will  remain  until  the  rise  of  another  freshet,  when  it 
will  be  again  swept  out  and  whirled  we  know  not 
whither.  When  the  tree  is  torn  up  by  the  roots  and 
swept  into  the  current,  there  is  no  telling  where  it  will 
stop ;  and  if  brought  to  shore,  it  will  be  difficult  to  re- 
plant it.  It  will  not  pay  for  the  labor.  Dr.  Priestley 
was  once  a  high  Calvinist,  then  a  low  one ;  then  an 
Armenian ;  then  a  high  Arian,  then  a  low  one  ;  then  a 
Unitarian ;  then  a  Humanitarian ;  and  he  was  once 
heard  to  say,  "  If  Grod  spares  me  a  few  years  more,  I 
know  not  what  I  shall  be  before  I  die."  When  a  stone 
is  started  on  the  brow  of  the  mountain,  it  is  hard  to 
stop  it  until  it  reaches  the  bottom. 

Many  make  a  great  noise  when  a  minister,  or  per- 
sons in  high  position,  pass  over  to  them.  But  they 
have  caught  only  drift-wood.  How  long  they  can  keep 
them  is  uncertain ;  and  to  what  use  they  can  put  them 
is  often  a  question. 

There  are  those  who  are  steadfast,  immovable,  al- 
ways abounding  in  the  works  of  the  Lord,  and  those 
who  are  ever  learning  and  never  coming  to  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  truth.  The  first  are  as  the  cedars  in  Leb- 
anon, that  bear  fruit  even  to  old  age,  and  that  are  fit 
to  be  converted  to  the  most  useful  purposes  in  the  house 
of  the  Lord ;  the  second  are  but  drift-wood,  scarcely 
fit  to  feed  the  fires  that  warm  it. 


264  PARISH     PENCIL  INGS. 

Christian  women.  Spartan  and  Christian  mothers. 


A  MOTHER  IN  ISRAEL 

IT  will  never  be  known,  until  the  day  of  final  reveal- 
ing, how  much  the  Church  of  G-od  and  the  world  owes 
to  the  prayers,  the  teachings,  the  quiet,  home  influence 
of  Christian  woman.  What  pastor  is  there  that  does 
not  acknowledge  her  powerful  influence  for  good  in 
every  department  of  usefulness  ?  And  were  it  possible 
to  subtract  from  the  entire  influence  of  the  Church  all 
that  is  contributed  to  it  by  Christian  woman,  it  would 
be  weakened  to  a  degree  of  which  we  can  scarcely  form 
a  conception.  If  Spartan  mothers  made  heroes  by  de- 
voting their  sons  on  the  altar  of  their  country  to  its 
service,  Christian  mothers  have  made  martyrs,  and 
missionaries,  and  ministers,  and  incorruptible  patriots, 
and  true  citizens,  by  devoting  them  on  the  altars  of  the 
Church  to  their  God.  A  woman  of  sense,  of  strong 
principles,  and  of  consistent,  firm  piety,  will  make  her 
impression  upon  her  children.  She  will  give  form  and 
direction  to  their  tastes  before  they  know  it ;  and  in 
the  school-room,  among  their  playmates,  and  even  in 
the  highest  moods  of  frolic  and  fun,  they  will  testify  to 
her  influence  by  their  superior  conduct.  The  good  Jo- 
siah  was  the  son  of  Amon,  a  monster  in  wickedness, 
and  the  grandson  of  Manasseh,  under  whose  superla- 
tively wicked  reign  the  Hebrews  sunk  to  a  lower  depth 


A     MOTHER     IN     ISRAEL.  265 

Mother  of  Josiah.  Her  influence  is  extended. 

in  departure  from  Grod  than  did  the  Canaanites  before 
them ;  but  his  mother  was  a  pious  woman.  And  when 
the  sacred  historian  would  tell  us  that  "  Josiah  was 
eight  years  old  when  he  began  to  reign,"  and  that  "  he 
did  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  and 
walked  in  all  the  ways  of  David  his  father,  and  turned 
not  aside  to  the  right  hand  or  to  the  left,"  he  would 
also  inform  us,  as  if  to  account  for  the  whole,  that  "  his 
mother's  name  was  Jedidah."  As  a  mother  in  Israel, 
Jedidah  devoted  her  infant  son  to  G-od;  she  prayed 
around  his  cradle ;  she  instilled  divine  principles  into 
his  youthful  mind ;  she  taught  him  to  fear  Grod,  and 
to  fear  nothing  else ;  and  when  Amon,  her  husband, 
fell  by  the  murderous  daggers  of  his  own  servants,  in 
his  own  house,  and  when  the  people  made  the  princely 
boy  king  in  his  place,  it  is  said,  boy  as  he  was,  that 
"  he  did  that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord." 
"  While  he  was  yet  young,  he  began  to  seek  after  the 
God  of  David  his  father ;  and  in  his  twelfth  year  he 
began  to  purge  Judah  and  Jerusalem  from  the  high 
places."  After  reigning  thirty-one  years,  he  was  slain 
in  battle  in  the  valley  of  Megiddo ;  "  and  all  Judah  and 
Jerusalem  mourned  for  Josiah."  And  his  pious  youth, 
and  his  prosperous  reign,  and  the  holy  influence  that 
went  out  from  his  throne  over  all  his  kingdom,  may 
be  traced,  under  God,  to  the  piety  and  precepts  of  his 
mother.  "  His  mother's  name  was  Jedidah." 

Such  a  mother  in  Israel  it  has  been  my  great  privi- 
lege to  know.  She  was  among  the  kindest  friends  and 
wisest  counselors  of  my  early  ministry ;  and  although 
years  have  passed  away  since  her  departure  for  the 

M 


PARISH     PENCILING  S. 


A  noble  woman.  History.  First  acquaintance. 

Church  triumphant,  the  savor  of  her  name  and  memo- 
ry is  as  sweet  ointment  poured  forth. 

She  was  the  daughter  of  a  New  England  clergyman, 
and  was  descended  from  a  Puritan  family,  many  of 
whose  members  rose  to  distinction  in  the  Church  and  in 
the  state.  She  became,  while  yet  young,  the  wife  of 
a  merchant  in  her  native  state,  who  for  years  was  en- 
gaged in  prosperous  business.  By  some  of  the  reverses 
of  trade,  his  property  was  suddenly  swept  away  like 
stubble  before  the  conflagration,  and  he  was  reduced 
to  poverty.  The  effect  upon  him  was  unhappy  through 
life ;  his  spirits  were  broken,  and  he  fell  into  bad  hab- 
its. They  removed  from  New  England,  and  on  my 
first  settlement  I  found  them  connected  with  my  con- 
gregation, far  advanced  in  life,  and  with  a  most  inter- 
esting family  of  children.  Although  not  hi  affluent 
circumstances,  yet  were  they  such  a  family  as  imme- 
diately attracted  attention,  and  commanded  respect  be- 
yond what  wealth  could  purchase. 

I  first  saw  that  good  old  lady  in  her  seat  in  the 
Church.  She  was  there  when  I  entered  it.  She  wore 
her  glasses,  and  through  the  service  appeared  remark- 
ably devout ;  and  as  if  for  the  purpose  of  reading  me 
through  and  through,  she  looked  over  them,  and  through 
them,  as  best  answered  her  purpose.  Such  was  the 
impression  she  made  upon  me,  that  I  made  inquiry  as 
to  who  she  was  before  I  left  the  Church. 

On  my  first  visit  to  her  she  was  reserved,  and  ap- 
parently depressed.  My  predecessor  in  the  ministry 
was  dismissed  after  a  protracted  strife,  which  left  many 
bitter  feelings.  She  adhered  to  him  to  the  last ;  and 


A     MOTHER     IN     ISRAEL.  267 

Her  trouble.  Time  to  pack  away.  Reserved. 

she  seemed  to  regret  that,  with  so  little  experience,  I 
should  launch  my  frail  bark  amid  waters  so  troubled. 
She  looked  on  my  youth — she  remembered  past  con- 
flicts-— and  she  was  troubled.  And  all  this  she  most 
kindly  though  timidly  intimated.  She  was  the  least 
forward,  for  a  woman  of  her  strong  sense,  that  I  ever 
knew. 

Her  former  pastor  was  afflicted  with  a  natural  hesi- 
tancy in  speaking,  which  was  considerably  increased 
by  an  attack  of  paralysis ;  and  his  enemies  plead  this  as 
one  among  the  many  reasons  for  which  they  urged  his 
removal.  But,  with  a  remarkable  dexterity,  she  con- 
verted it  into  an  argument  for  his  remaining.  "  We 
hear  the  Grospel,"  she  would  say,  "with  too  little 
thoughtfulness  and  application.  One  truth  is  uttered 
after  another,  and  before  we  can  weigh  one,  another  is 
on  the  top  of  it,  and  another  on  the  top  of  that ;  and 
thus  the  G-ospel  runs  through  our  minds  like  water 
through  a  glass  tube  :  none  of  it  sticks ;  and  when  we 
come  home,  we  remember  nothing  that  we  have  heard. 

Now  I  like  these  long  pauses  of  Mr.  Gr ,  because 

they  give  me  time  to  pack  away  what  he  says."  On 
first  hearing  this  sentiment  from  her  own  lips,  I  imme- 
diately formed  my  estimate  of  her,  which  I  had  never 
reason  to  change,  save  on  the  side  of  a  higher  admira- 
tion of  her  character. 

Although,  when  interested,  her  conversational  pow- 
ers were  very  fine  and  remarkably  suggestive,  yet  she 
was  habitually  reserved.  Her  voice  was  never  heard 
in  the  street,  nor  in  the  social  gathering,  save  in  its  low 
tones.  She  was  candid  in  her  opinions,  deliberate  in 


268  PARISH     PENCILING^. 

Firmness.  Hearing  the  Gospel.  Devotional  frame. 

the  formation  of  them,  and  cautious  in  their  utterance  ; 
but  when  formed,  she  never  yielded  them  save  for  a 
reason,  and  always  changed  them  for  a  good  reason. 
Hence  she  was  an  oracle  to  many,  and  her  opinions 
were  the  law  of  her  household.  So  extended  was  her 
knowledge  of  Christian  doctrine  and  experience,  that 
she  could  resolve  perplexity  as  to  either  with  remark- 
able skill ;  and  her  advice  was  constantly  sought  by 
the  serious,  the  inquiring,  and  the  desponding. 

The  excuse  she  made  for  her  former  pastor  revealed 
her  manner  of  hearing  the  Grospel.  She  always  pre- 
pared for  the  house  of  Grod — was  always  there  when 
able  to  go — and  heard  with  devotion  and  application. 
She  would  let  the  commonplaces  go ;  but  she  would 
seize  with  avidity  upon  important  truths,  and  would 
"  pack  them  away,"  to  be  brought  out  on  future  occa- 
sions for  use.  She  cared  far  less  about  the  manner 
than  the  matter ;  and  when  persons  would  be  depreci- 
ating ministers  because  of  their  dullness  or  want  of  ele- 
gance, she  would  quote  some  sentiments  to  which  they 
had  given  utterance,  and  would  say,  "  Until  I  do  all 
they  have  taught  me,  I  have  no  fault  to  find." 

Her  devotional  spirit  was  of  a  marked  character. 
She  was  not  an  ascetic — she  had  no  ritual  hours — she 
was  no  believer  in  the  virtue  of  forms ;  and  while  I 
know  nothing  about  her  closet  hours,  I  never  found  her 
otherwise  than  in  a  devotional  frame.  Grod,  to  her, 
was  every  where  and  in  every  thing ;  and  she  sought 
to  do  all  she  did  as  under  his  eye  and  to  the  glory  of 
his  name.  Her  devotion  was  not  confined  to  the  Sab- 
bath nor  to  set  occasions :  it  was  habitual.  While  she 


A     MOTHER     IN     ISRAEL.  269 

God's  presence.  Principles.  Anecdote. 

had  her  alternations  of  depression  and  joyfulness,  the 
omnipresence  of  Grod  was  often  a  theme  of  remark,  and 
she  could  say, 

"  Within  thy  circling  power  I  stand, 
On  every  side  I  find  thy  hand ; 
Awake,  asleep,  at  home,  abroad, 
I  am  surrounded  still  with  God." 

And  a  constant  sense  of  his  presence  acted  as  fuel 
to  feed  the  fires  of  her  devotion.  Often  have  I  seen 
her  remaining  in  the  church  until  all  had  left  it,  as 
if  praying  that  the  services  might  be  blessed  of  the 
Lord,  and  then  quietly  walking  alone  to  her  house,  as 
if  "  packing  away"  and  apply  ing  the  truth  that  had 
been  preached. 

Her  principles  never  yielded  to  her  prejudices  or  af- 
fections. They  were  her  rule  and  law.  A  remarkable 
instance  and  illustration  of  this  she  gave  in  the  case 
of  her  youngest  child.  She  called  him  by  the  name 
of  her  New  England  pastor,  to  whom  she  was  remark- 
ably attached,  and  to  whom  also  she  owed  a  debt  of 
gratitude  for  many  kind  favors.  He  became  an  avow- 
ed Unitarian ;  and  the  moment  she  was  convinced  that 
her  friend  and  benefactor  had  denied  the  divinity  of 
her  Lord  and  Master,  her  sense  of  gratitude  and  her 
strong  affection  yielded  to  her  principles.  She  changed 
the  name  of  her  son ;  and  he  yet  lives,  bearing  and 
honoring  the  name  of  one  of  Old  England's  noblest 
judges,  instead  of  that  of  an  apostate  from  the  truth  as 
it  is  in  Jesus. 

Her  faith  in  G-od  was  strong,  and  but  rarely  waver- 
ing. It  was  to  her  the  substance  of  things  hoped  for, 


270  PARISH     PENCILING  S. 

Her  faith.  Wherefore  this  waste  ?  Her  husband. 

and  the  evidence  of  things  not  seen.  During  a  pro- 
tracted service,  in  which  those  eloquent  and  sainted 
men,  "Winchester  and  Dr.  John  Breckenridge,  assisted, 
she  was  a  constant  and  devout  attendant ;  and  when 
a  service  would  conclude  without  any  apparent  results, 
she  would  ask,  "  Wherefore  this  waste  ?  wherefore  this 
waste  ?"  She  was  looking  for  the  descent  of  the  Spirit 
upon  every  service,  and  expressed  her  disappointment 
when  her  anxious  prayers  were  not  answered.  But 
they  were  answered,  and  in  a  way  that  will  be  felt  in 
that  community  and  for  ages  to  come.  She  has  already 
commenced  the  undying  song  with  some  who  were 
then  born  again,  and  with  some  who  preceded  her  from 
her  own  household. 

The  salvation  of  her  husband  was  with  her  a  daily 
solicitude.  His  habits  were  bad ;  and  although  ami- 
able, he  had  grown  gray  and  decrepit  in  the  ways  of 
impenitence.  There  was  every  thing  in  his  case  to 
discourage  hope ;  yet  her  hope  in  reference  to  him  never 
wavered.  He  died  of  protracted  disease,  and  gave  to 
her,  to  his  children,  and  to  all  who  visited  him,  as  good 
an  evidence  as  such  cases  usually  afford,  that  he  died 
in  the  Lord.  Her  remarkable  faith  in  reference  to  him, 
and  its  protracted  exercise  among  difficulties,  make  his 
a  far  more  hopeful  case  than  death-bed  repentances 
usually  are.  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  the  soul  of  her 
husband  is  now  a  shining  star  in  the  crown  of  her  re- 
joicing. 

But  it  was  especially  upon  the  minds  and  hearts  ol 
her  children  that  she  left  the  deepest  impression  of  her 
character.  They  resembled  her  physically.  Her  ways 


A     MOTHER     IN     ISRAEL.  271 

Her  children.  Their  position.  -Pious  life  immortal. 

of  thinking,  her  very  tones  of  voice,  they  caught.  Her 
prudent  caution — her  natural  reserve — her  adherence 
to  principles,  were  theirs ;  and  although  all  of  them 
were  not  converted  until  after  her  death,  her  faith  never 
wavered  as  to  the  conversion  of  them  all.  She  com- 
mitted them  all  to  the  Lord,  and  she  knew  that  he 
would  keep  that  which  she  had  committed  unto  him. 
Among  the  last  words  she  ever  uttered  were  these,  in 
reference  to  her  children :  "  0  Lord,  all  mine  are  thine." 
And  every  one  of  her  children  were  brought  into  the 
Church,  the  youngest  since  her  happy  death,  and  most 
of  them  yet  live,  filling  and  adorning  positions  of  dis- 
tinguished usefulness.  One  is  an  eminent  jurist, 
worthy  of  the  place  once  occupied  by  a  Marshall.  One 
is  a  clergyman  known  in  all  the  Church  for  his  abili- 
ties and  amiable  virtues.  One  was  the  lovely  wife  of 
a  minister,  whose  sun  went  down  before  it  reached  its 
noontide.  Two  are  ornaments  of  the  bar  and  of  the 
medical  profession.  One  died  in  hope,  the  wife  of  an 
army  surgeon,  and  was  buried  by  the  waves  of  the 
Mississippi.  And  two  others,  in  the  spheres  in  which 
they  move,  are  serving  their  generation  according  to 
the  will  of  G-od. 

That  mother  is  gone ;  but  her  influence  lives  in  her 
children,  and  will  be  transmitted  to  her  children's  chil- 
dren to  the  remotest  times.  Such  a  life  as  she  led  is 
immortal.  She  was  a  mother  in  Israel,  and  deserves 
a  place,  as  do  many  others,  by  the  side  of  Jocebed, 
Hannah,  and  Jedidah,  the  mothers  of  the  pious  Moses, 
Samuel,  and  Josiah. 

When  such  mothers  are  multiplied  in  Israel,  there 


272  PARISH     PE  NCI  I- INGS. 

The  highest  style  of  woman. 

will  be  more  piety  in  the  Church,  and  more  patriotism 
in  the  state,  and  more  principle  every  where.  A  pious, 
intelligent  mother,  living  by  faith,  and  bringing  up  her 
household  for  heaven,  is  the  highest  style  of  woman. 


THE    END. 


KIRWAN'S  WORKS, 


PUBLISHED  BY 


Harper  &  Brothers, 

FRANKLIN    SQUARE,    N.    Y. 


Romanism  at  Home. 

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of  the  United  States.  By  KIRWAN.  12mo,  Muslin, 
75  cents. 

Men  and  Things 

as  I  saw  them  in  Europe.  By  KIRWAN.  12mo, 
Muslin,  75  cents. 

Parish  and  other  Pencilings. 

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